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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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Pk)tograph]c 

Sciences 
Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  145*0 

(716)872-4S03 


,^ 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historlquas 


iV 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  iti  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mithode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiqu6s  ci-dessous. 


D 
D 
D 
D 

n 
n 

D 
D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 

Covers  damaged/ 
Couverture  endommagie 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurie  et/ou  pellicuMe 

Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  giographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  inic  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  blaue  ou  noire) 

Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Relii  avec  d'autres  documents 


D 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 


□    Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommag6es 

□    Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restauries  et/ou  pelliculies 

r~V^Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Lkj    Pages  dicofories,  tachetdes  ou  piqudes 

I      I    Pages  detached/ 


B 


Pages  ddtachdes 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 


I      I    Quality  of  print  varies/ 


Quality  inigale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  suppi^mentaire 


D 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  liure  serr6e  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  int6rieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajouttes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte. 
mais,  lorsque  cela  itait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6ti  film^es. 


Ef 


D 
D 


Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure. 
etc.,  ont  M  film6es  d  nouveau  de  fa^on  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  supplAmentaires; 


Irregular  pagination  :   [3],  i-xiii,  [11,  [25]  -  [368],  371-[382],  385-[390j,  393-517,  [5]  p. 
Wrinkled  pages  may  film  slightly  out  of  focus. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  reduction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


26X 


30X 


y 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  here  hat  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 


L'exemplaire  fiimA  fut  reproduit  grAce  A  la 
g^n^rositA  de: 


•Is 
du 

difier 
jne 
lage 


Library 

Indian  and  Northarn  Affairs 

The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


BibliothtqiM 

Affairas  indiannet  at  du  Nord 

Les  imsges  suivantes  ont  4t4  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet*  de  I'exempiaire  filmA,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimAe  sont  filmte  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmfo  en  commen9ant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  -^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  y  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaTtra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  -^  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
filmte  A  des  taux  de  reduction  diff Arents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clichA,  11  est  f  ilmA  A  partir 
de  I'angle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


rata 

3 


elure. 


M5]p. 


3 


32X 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

*"-♦. 


# 


,;rt* 


bii    K.  K    KANE 


■t 


-^ 


.»' 


m 


.-«»■ 


0 


**- 


1 1 


1    -. 


# 


i 


\  ARCTIC 

EXPLORATIONS  AltD  DISCOVERIES 


1 


DURING  THE  NINSIXENTII  GfeNTUBT. 


nma  nnAiuDi&oooinnt  or 


.■f 


THE  SEVERAL  EXPEI>ITiOI$ J 


-i.,-^ 


BOM,  PABBT,  BACK,  VBAmLm,  lf*GLI7BB  ABB  OTVMBS. 

■     ♦ 

INCLVDIHO 

THE  TOi^r  (s^llIKKEIX  EXFEDITtOH, 

VVMB  UBUVUI AXT  Ml  HATBir,  Am  IHB 

■'■»■-' 

TINAL  EFFORT  OF  DR.  E.  K.  K  JlNB 
"^    8EA8CH  OF  SIR  JOHN  FRIUnCUK. 


% 


JCDITJBD  AND  OOBEFLBXED 

SAMUEL  M.  SMUCKER«^.  M., 


Avnom  OF  **  oovB*  Aim  Biteir  «r  oiXRainni  n.,**  **  amoiiAa  t,"  ** 

■oumi  n  navcB  Hmovr,'*  **  birobt  ov  nn  mwiwiw,"  iml 


'#' 


NEW  yOEK: 

C.  M.  SAXTON,  25  PARK  ROW. 

1869. 


,«;"i^^-1 


f*n>f  nm^-jwi't' 


.  I 


HOrHFR?^  a;' AIRS 

JUL  20  igso 

Northern  Affairs  Li^iy 
OTTAWA      * 


t< 


Entand  Meordioff  to  Ast  of  CongMM,  In  £b«  ^mt  on*  t^—md  tl^  hondNd 

and  llftyHWTvn, 

BTMILLBB,  OBTONAOO.,  % 

In  Um  Ctakli  Offloeof  th«  DMriet  Court  of  fbe  Nflrth«m  DiaMot  of  Ntw  Tort.- 


*«-■. 


;t;  ai-siv  ai'J '. 


M'>0!ff"*«' 


PBEFACE. 


Tbx  records  of  nmitime  adventure  and  diaoorerj  oooi 
ititnte  one  of  the  most  attractive  pages  in  Hteratnre. 
Nearly  three  thousand  years  before  the  birth  of  Ohrist, 
the  bold  Tyxians  and  Fhoenidans  deserted  the  confines  of 
their  native  continent  to  explore  new  realms,  and  to  ob- 
tain firom  the  then  unknown  land  of  Spain,  the  means  of 
augmented  splendor,  Itizary,  and  wealth.  From  that  re* 
mote  period,  down  through  succeeding  ages  until  the 
present,  the  most  enterprising  and  dawtless  of  human 
spirits  have  found  their  congeiual  field  of  labor  and  ac- 
tivity in  adventuring  into-  untrodden  and  unfiimiliar  re 
^ons  in  search  of  riches,  celebrity,  and  conquest. 

•  It  was  this  spirit  which  has  in  the  past  given  birth  to 
many  great  states  9^  empires.  It  was  this  spirit  which 
planted  Garthag#on  the  northern  shores  of  Afirica,  and 
eventually  rmdered  her  the  dangerous  and  not  unworthy 
lival  of  Rome.  It  was  this  spirit  which  built  Marseilles, 
Aries,  Nismes,  and  many  of  the  most  important  cities  of 


m 


iwmiO'P^ 


IV 


PBKFAOR. 


\ 


France,  which  contain  to  this  day  impressive  monuments 
of  Roman  origin  and  Hapromaoy.  It  was  this  spirit  which 
made  England  pass  iuccessively  under  the  resistless  sway 
of  her  Roman,  Saxon,  Danish,  and  Korman  conquerors^ 
But  more  «apeoiaUy  was  it  this  Mstlsss  and  insatiable 
genius  of  advei^iire  which  or«IMd  Hio  greitness  of  the 
chief  marltiiiiyitici^ 

ice,  as  well  as  that  of  the  kingdom  e^B^trtiigalind  Spain. 
To  this  same  desire  for  disoovery  the  worUtls  indebted 
for  the  glorious  achievements  of  Columbus,  Vespucius, 
and  De  Soto ;  and  for  the  revdMon  of  the  magnificent 
novelties  and  unparalleled  beauties  of  these  western  con- 
tinents, ladened  with  the  most  valuable  treasures  and 
products  of  the  earth,  which  they  threw  open  to  the  \ 
knowledge  and  the  possession  of  mankind. 

After  the  discovery  of  the  American  continents,  and  »£• 
terthe  thorough  exploration  of  the  Southern  and  Pacific 
oceans,  it  was  generally  supposed  that  the  materials  for 
further  adventures  of  this  description  had  all  been  ex- 
hausted. The  whole  habitable  globe  seemed  then  to 
have  been  made  accessible  and  ^miliar  to  men,  both  as 
apostles  of  science  and  as  emissaries  of  commerce.  It 
was  thought  that  the  era  of  maritime  discovery,  the  days 
>of  Yasco  de  Gkuna,  of  Marco  Polo,  and  of  Sydney,  had 
ended  forever.  But  this  supposition  was  eiToneous.  One 
additional  field  of  this  description  yet  remained.  It  was 
indeed  a  gloomy  and  repulsive  one.  It  was  totally  de- 
void of  the  attractive  and  romantic  splendors  which  in 
other  days  had  allured  men  to  ssolitthrough  tranquil 
oceans  to  fragrant  islands,  which  bloomed  like  gardens  on 
the  bosom  of  summer  seas ;  or  to  continents  whidi  were 
covered  with  th<^.  richness  of  tropical  vegetation  and  Iux9. 


)t~ 


IBKVAOIC. 


rianoe,  uid  wer&  itored  with  gpioetf  gold,  «nd  gm&  But 
it  waa  •  field  which  demanded  greater  heroiam,  greater 
endnranoe,  and  waa  fraught  with  greater  perfls,  than  tsaj 
other  departBient  of  diaooTerj.  Thia  region  lajihr  np 
toward  the  Northern  Pole.  It  waa  the  yaat  firoaen  land 
of  everlaating  anow-fielda,  of  itnpendona  ioe-bergs,  of 
h  jperborean  atorms,  of  the  long,  cheerless  nights  of  the 
Arotio  Zone.  To  nangate  and  explore  these  dismal 
realms,  men  of  extreme  daring,  of  sublime  fortHnde,  of 
unconquerable  perseyeranoe,  were  absolutely  necessary. 
And  such  men  possessadne  great  element  of  distinguish- 
ing  greatness,  of  whionlnir  explorers  of  more  genial  and 
inviUng  climes  were  destitute.  Their  investigationa  were 
made  entirely  without  the  prospect  of  rich  reward,  and 
chiefly  for  the  promotion  of  the  magnificent  ends  of 
Boienoe.  The  discovery  of  a  north-western  passage  waa 
indeed  not  forgotten ;  but  it  must  be  conceded  that  other 
less  mercenary  and  more  philanthropic  motivet  have 
^ven  rise  to  the  larger  portion  of  the  expeditions  which, 
during  the  {progress  of  the  nineteenth  century,  have  in- 
vaded the  cheerless  solitudes  of  that  dangerous  and  re- 
pulsive portion  of  the  globe. 

The  following  pages  contain  a  narrative  of  the  chief 
adventures  and  discoveries  of  Arctic  explorers  during 
this  century.  No  etpe^tion  ^ilany  importance  hai  been 
omitted^^  «nd  the  #6rk  lias  beei|^brou|;ht  down  iti iis  de- 
tails ;t^,^||feft  present  Isune,  so  as  io  indude  a  safisfitetory 
aocolmt  of  t|ie  labors,  sufferings,  and  trinnq>ha  qf  that 
prince  of  Arctic  eiflorers  and  philanthropiBti^  Dr.  Kane ; 
whose  adventures,  and  whose  able  narrative  of  them,  en- 
title him  to  fadeless  celebrity,  both  as  a  hero  in  the  field, 
and  as  a  man  of  high  genius  and  scholarship. 


n 


PBETACI. 


Srery  rMder  who  oareftilly  penues  the  following  pg* 
gefl  miut  be  oonvinoed  that  the  Arotic  hemisphere  hM 
now  been  thoronghly  explored.  Every  aooeenble  ipoi 
has  been  visited  and  examined  by  some  one  or  other 
of  the  various  expeditions  wliich  have  been  sent  oat ;  and 
that  vast  extent  of  oountries  and  of  seas  whioh  niterveoe 
from  Smith's  Sound  and  Wolstenholme  Sound  in  the  ex- 
treme east,  being  the  remotest  northern  limits  of  Ghreen- 
land,  to  the  westward  as  far  as  to  Behring*s  Straits,  which 
divide  America  from  Asia,  has  been  examined.  These 
limits  indose  an  area  of  about  ^om^  thousand  miles,  every 
attainable  portion  of  which  hasloeen  subjected  to  the 
scmtmy  of  recent  Arotic  explorers.  It  can  scarcely  be  ex- 
pected that  any  traces  of  the  existence  and  fate  of  Sir  John 
Franklin  still  remain  on  the  globe,  whioh  further  perse- 
verance and  research  could  possibly  reveal.  Even  if  the 
great  chapter  of  Arctic  discovery  and  adventure  should 
now  be  dosed,  it  will  constitute  one  of  the  most  remark- 
able and  entertaining  departments  of  human  heroism, 
enterprise,  and  endurance,  which  biogn^hy  or  history 
presents. 


iJ4.i;*;ii*%.:/L£-ft»'A;^i-i.  i-6i(»->r**r;-.,    i'^W.--    *«-•    IRiii    i»--': 


J-J,*^. 


*t*» 


^m 


t*y,M$>*m ** «^*ft'i«- ^.  OOXTBITTS, 


UMtolnaim«rtlMAntleSi«lQa^lloaMora«t  Ihipi^  V«gng*-fteiy't  Mt 
Ftaaklta't  opiniolu  on  «  mnrthwMt  pMMff»— AlMtraot  of  Hr 7«hB  Bairow'i  wwktiM 
Arctle  Dtwiwry— Bni^Mitf •  m^tai^  hwr  —■Meal  hwow. 

Cnptoin  Sir  John  Row'*  yojil||r  in  th«  Inbelk  and  Al«sand«r  ta 
HodaoD'8  Bay  in  1818 17 

Munmof  ttw  oBcew  Mid  Mfti-BMy  vhitol  bf  ttM  aativM  of  OrMohad-AVaB* 
daiiM  of  birds  on  thk  eOMfe— Ctato  of  wind^Rcd  aiow— LanoMtor  loaad— Th*  Mmp 
looi  fktHtm  ■BowiNhM    ignw  monamwit— Liggo  bow  ■boC^BaCwn  hono. 

Voyage  of  Bnchan  and  Franklin  in  tbe  Dorothea  and  Trent,  to 
»  Spitzbttfgen,  A<x,  1818, 45 

MtaBM  of  oSoort  ond  oomplwBMit,  fto.— 'VuiolM  upMuranoe  of  leoborgi  Bhipg 
anifo  at  8pitab«rgo»— Anehor  in  MMriatoii  Bm— HMwiag  Irnberg*— ImoMf  Qoelu 
of  MH»— DHMOToiMaMMnt  of  Rots*  Mft— Attack  of  wttraiwa  WmptUmd  bgrj  "  ' 
fbr  vifllton—DoToiit  ii^iaf  of  roetnaa— Bxpodltloa  p«ta  to  ■•• 
tbaaanlTaa  oa  tha  ioo— Miipa  daouflad  bgr  tiM  praamira  of  tlM  iloaa— O 
of  thaaii^pa—llhay  taka  raltaga  in^ttha  main  pack  of  toabarga    Yaaaala  puflnte  fUr 

Franldin'a  First  Land  Ezpwiition,  1819-31 61 

Tartr  1"*^  Bnglaad  fa  tha  Frlnea  of  Walaa— Raaeh  Hndaon's  Bay  ftotory  by  (ha 
and  of  Augoai— Prooaad  br  tha  rivars  and  lakaa  to  Onbbarland  Honaa— Arriva  ai  Fort 
CaUpawyan  altar  a  winlar  Joamar  of  8&7  milaa  Wnpiga  Toraaaura  and  gnidaa  Maka 
tha  aeqnaintanoa  of  AkaftolwH  tna  Indian  oiiiaf— Fwk  on  »r  FOrt  Aitarpriaat  wlUab 
la  Biada  ttiair  wintar  raaidanea  aftar  a  vovafa  of  SOhIIm— Bxpk»iugraxouraiona«a»< 
tied  on  daring  ttia  wintar— "Graan  Btookings,"  tha  lamk  baantT— Moraa  and  Biqal- 
nuHix  fatarpratwa  arriw  Jarai'Uy  of  tiia  wintar— •oiMnM  of  tha  Indtana— Flurtf 
Mk  ont  fcr  tha  Polar  Baa  Bramhia  tlta  ooaat  waafcward  of  Point  Tonufdn— Draadfld 
bardihipaandB«flbrinpandnradoBthakrrataniJ«amajr,  flrom  iunina  and  IkHina 
Daath  of  aaveral  of  tha  p^r-Mr.  Bood  ia  aordarad  by  Mkshal  ttia  irofMia,  whak 
Ibr  thair  rnqtMl  aalbtg^  ia  IqBad  bf  9r.  BiehardMn— Hangar  and  ftadnaaodnrai  Iv 
tha  parl7»1M»  alliaiaU»alia£ 

Parly's  Fiil|.yo7age in  fh«HeoIa«nd  Griper,  1819-20,... ^..85 

Namaa  of  oMeara  aanfaft  &e.i— Entar  Laneaatar  Soond— Iha  Crolwr  aoontalna 
profa  to  ba  ftUadotia— Fariy  dlworert  and '  antafa  BMont  Inla^— Ako  diaoovara  and 
namaa  variooa  idanda,  e«Na,aad  clianriala— Baachaa  ifehriHa  Mand— Bxpaditlon  erbm 
thamaridknof  110»  W,  and  baooma  antitlad  to  tha  FarlfautMMary  raward  of  XaOM 
—Drop  anchor  fat  thaflrat  tima— Land  on  tha  iripid— Abnqdanea  of  animala  fbund-^ 
An  axplorhir  partar  loaa  thamaehaa  #nr  tlvaa  d^fU;  bat  arlf  raootarad  and  broiuM 
badc-^aaaab  gat  mto  mntar-qnartara— A  MS.  nawapqiar  pnbMahed  amateur  pays 
porlbnnad— Ofaaarvatory  daahN^rad  bj  iba— flonrvy  makaaitt  appaaranoa— Crawa  pal 

Sdiort  alkmaaoa— An  azonraian  of  a  fiwtniiM  nmda  to  asamina  tb4  iaUnd— Milpa  gal 
V  of  tha  loo-Bot  ara  unaUa  to  laaha  ItartlMr  pngiMf  t»«ha  wMliiat^  foddMi 
fama  to  Bagland  la  datarmined  on.  ..  :xsss:i::a  ^:.  ■     " 


•# 


VUl 


CONTENTS. 


vf' 


Fwiy'H  Second  Vojage  in  the  Fuiy  and  Hecla.  1831-23 lUl 

Wb  opinion  u  to  «  northwest  pMMg»— Make  Beaolution  iatend,  at  th«  ontrance  of 
HndMm'i  Stnit— Dangvra  of  the  ice— FaU  in  with  Hudson'  sBaj  Company's  shipsi  and 
•migrant  ressel,  with  Dutch  colcmists  proceeding  to  Red  River — Two  immense  bears 
UDsd— Deaeripdon  of  the  Bsonimauz— Surveys  made  of  all  the  indentationa  and  coasts 
of  this  loeaUty— Ships  driven  Mck  bv  the  enrrent  and  drift-ice— Talie  up  their  wlnter- 
qoarters— And  resort  to  tfaeatrieu  amusements  again— Schools  estsnlished— Great 
severitgr  of  the  winter— Surveying  operationa  resumed— Intellteent  KsnnimanT  Urania 
aflbrds  vahwble  hydrognqphieal  inibrmation— Periloua  poaitton  of  um  HedlH-Ber 
miraculous  release  Ships  psss  their  second  winter  at  Igloollk— The  Fury  and  Beds 
Strait  ajumined— Ice  breaks  i»— ttiisa  drtvn  abMfc  nr  tlie  conant  m  tlilr(gr>§rs 
4ay»-At  last  gain  the  Atlantis  MddWIcs  flnr  bilmdr 

ClaTering*s  Voyage  to  Spitzbeigen  and  Greenland  in  the  Griper, 
1833 ; 126 


vConTsys  out  Oq>t  Sabine  to  make  observations— Beach  SpHdnrgMH-ftacaedflwnct    . , 
to  Fmdulom  Islands— Northeastern  coast  of  Greenland  surveyed— Captain  davering 
WBAapaHgr  of  niaalsen  men  carry  on  an  exploring  ttpedition  fk#  a  ibrtnlghl— Mm 
wlllr«  tribe  of  Bsqoimanx— Ship  pots  to  sear-Mtdce  ibr  the  coast  Of  NorwMy^Andior 
In  DrontheimHord— Observations  being  complo||Adi^  returns  to  England. 

Lyon's  Voyage  in  the  Griper,. 188 

Is  sent  to  survey  and  examine  the  straitp  and  4uMres  «f  Arctic  Americ*— Arrives  in 
the  diannel  known  a^  Roe's  Welcome— Encotmters  a  Urriflo  gale— Is  in  imminent  Jsa* 
ger  in  the  Bay  of  God's  Mercv— SofSnrs  firotii  anotl)er.fiawrful  storm— Tbo  sh<p  bdag .  i 
quits  crippled,  and  having  lost  all  her  anchors,  &e^  Is  oblig^  to  return  home.  \ 

Parry's  Third  Voyage  in  the  Heda  and  Fuiy,  1S24--25 130. 

Msmes  and  number  of  the  officers,  &c.— Hecla  kid  on  her  broadside  by  the  tee— 
Sh^^  c^Mdi  Lancaster  Soundr-Enter  Regent  Inlet,  and  winter  at  Port  Bowen-4>reary 
ohawLHjfcjf  the  arctic  winter— Former  aiiiusenients  worn  tlaeadbare  ■Fciar  Bd. 
SftM^pxfJMnp— Exploring  parties  sent  out  inland  and  akng  the  coast  Ships  aro 
ttUtm^mt  beset  bv  the  toe,  and  carried  by  the  paek  down  tiw  inlet— iFury  driven  oa 
shors  SJaWbandoned— Return  voyage  necessarihr  determined  on— Scarcity  of  animal 
Ibod  in  this  locality— Hecla  arrives  at  FMerhead— Fanry's  opinions  of  the  nwrtbwssl 


Franklin's  Second  Land  Expedition,  1825-26 187 

MMiaes  of  the  oAcen  aecompanying  him— Arrive  in  Mew  Tork  and  proceed  through 
the  Hudson's  B$j  Company's  territories— Winter' at  Fort  FrankUn  on  Great  Bear  . 
Lako— A  pioneer  partjy  proceeds  to  evunine  the  state  of  the  PMar  Sear-Return  and 
paas  tiie  long  winter— Descend  tiie  Maekmixie  in  the  wpriag—'Btxtr  divide ;  Franklin 
and  Back  proceeding  to  the  westward,  while  Dr.  Richaruon  and  Mr.  Kendal,  &o, 
ftaOow  the  Coppermine  River— Franklin  encounters  a  fierce  tribe  of  Esqidmaux  at  the 
ssft— Aftw  amonth's  survey  to  iiie  eastward,  IVankHn  and  his  party  retrace  their  steps 
—jnttA  BIdiiardson  and  Kendal  had  retornd  before  tbein,  after  readiing  and  ex^t^ 
ing  DotoUn  and  Union  Strait— Another  winter  spent  at  Fort  Fhuddin— IMenaity  <v 
Hw  ooUf-Largs  ooDeetion  of  ol)jeets  elf  natural  nistory  made  <by  Mr.  Drummond'^ 
Franklin's  struggle  between  aSbctton  and  duty— Bsrty  return  to  Bn^and. 

Okptain  Beechey's  Voyage  to  Behring's  Strait  in  the  BIo«ioni. 
1825-26 ,,. 140 

Anchors  off  Fetropaidowdd— Receivea  intelBgence  of  Fkrry's  saA  return— Intervioiv 
v«lth  the  natives— Correct  hydrographical  descriptions  given  by  the  Esqnfa»ux— • 
Ships  boatpusbes  on  to  the  eoatwaiAJW  flff  as  Point  Barrow,  to  commumoate  with 
Fruklin-^Orew  in  danger^flrom  ths  nihtivea— Obliged  to  return  to  tiieir  shta>».^11iO 
Blossom  ptooeeds  to  -the  Padfle,  to  repleniafa  her  proviaiooa— Returns  to  Kotsebui' 
Sound  in  ttw  summer— Ship  grounds  on  a  sand-banic,  but  is  got  off— Boat  ssnt  outte 
learn  ti^Bngs  of  Franidiii,  is  wrecked— Grew  oome  into.  oolUtion  witii  hostlli  iwtt«siL< 
s|^arf  jronndfdinMiM  np  by  the  ship— iMspatehes  left  Ibr  FratAUn,  aat  tkS^^ 


00;5iTBNTa. 


IX 


.lUl 


.Its 


.130. 


..137 


£  -XV 


.140 


wnt— 
kt«  with 

-TlM 

(otxebnp 
lit  out  to 


P«ny'«  Fourth  or  Polar  Voyage  in  tUe  Hecla,  1827 , ,.i44 

Plans  and  uaggaMima  of  Scoreiby,  Bcaufoy  imd  Franklin  for  InnraUiui  9a  siadga* 
over  tta*  ice — Names  of  the  ofltcera  employed— Ship  emborlu  reindeer  on  the  Norw^ 
anart  FniiiiiaBTiri  •  tanmandoua  gale  Beaat  bf  io* for  a  moath.>hAneh«r8  at  Bpita* 
bergea  Medge-boata  prepared  for  the  ice  JourBey— Deaoriptioa  <rf  them— Wght 
tomad  into  dajr— Mow  prnpaaa— OecupatioM  of  the  part^— Loae  ground  Iqr  the 
aouthward  drift  of  the  ii'o— Bear  ahot— Notieea  of  animate  aeen— Beaofa  northeiiWMiat 
kao«m  land— Tb«  iaiat  aanad  after  Boaa— Betura  to  tha  ahip— -jRarrir'a  aobaacnent 
BOggeatlona  on  tbia  hmmU  of  tnw«lin»— Sir  John  Barrow'a  commenta  thereon -Opin- 
lana  of  tfaJa  peritoua  iee  Journey— Samw  of  Fanry'a  arotio  aendcea. 

Captain  John  Bobs'*  Swoad  Voyage  in  tho  Victory,  1839-33.. «....  165 

Soaa  leelM  offidol  empkyment  fkom  the  Admiralbr  on  another  arctic  Toyage— la  re- 
fbaed— Funda  are  ftirnlidwd  by  Ifir.  Felix  Bootl^— The  Victor  steamer  purcbaaad— 
BngagM  Ids  nepheWi  Commander  Jamea  Boaa,  as  Ida  secona  in  ooomiandr-Uik  of 
other  olBcers— Ship  encounters  a  gale,  and  is  obliged  to  put  into  Holsteinberg  to  rett 
— Proceed  on  theur  voyage — ^EntMr  Lancaster  Sound  and  Begcnt  Inlet— Beach  Focj 
Beach— Find  lArandance  of  atores  there,  and  preaenred  meat  in  excellent  condition— 
Btt^eniah  their  stock— Proceed  down  the  Inlet— Perils  of  the  ice— Vessel  aacured  in 
FeBx  Harbor  for  the  winter— Saquimaux  viait  the  ah4>— Furnish  very  correct  aketehea 
of  the  coast  Oomnwnder  Jamea  Boaa  makea  many  excursiena  inland  and  along  tho 
bam  ;«nd  Inleta— Explores  BoasTs  teait,  and  puahcs  on  to  King  WiMiam'a  Land— DUB< 
•lu^  of  distinguishing  land  ftomiaa    F 


-Beaohea  Point  VicttHry  and  tuma  back— Ship 

Kta'dear  of  t&e  ice,  after  eleven  months*  impriaonment,  but  in  a  week  is  again  fToaen 
,  and  the  party  are  detained  during  another  severe  winter— Further  discoveries  made^ 
and  Oommander  Boss  plants  the  BraiA  fine  on  the  north  magaettb  polo— In  Auguat, 
1831,  the  ship  is  vrarped  out,  and  nudces  sau,  but  after  beating  about  for  a  month,  ia 
•gain  flroaen  in ;  and  rather  than  spend  A  fourth  winter,  there  being  no  prospect  of 
releasing  tha  sh^  she  to  abandoned,  and  the  crew  make  for  Fury  Beach- Providona 
and  bom  taken  on  with  great  latwr— Par^  erect  a  canvaa  hut,  which  they  name  Bom- 
eraet  House— In  a  month,  the  boata  being  prepafred  for  the  voyage,  tho  fixtj  embark, 
and  reach  the  mouth  of  the  inlet— Barrow's  Btiyt  is  found  one  compact  maaa  of  lo»— 
Thaty  ar«  obliged  to  foU  back  on  the  stores  at  Fury  Beach  to  mnd  their  fourth  winlar— 
Placed  on  shwt  aUowanoe— In  the  qtringtheyagidn  embiri|ln  their  boatyind  wicoaed 
In  reaching  Unoaater  Bound— FaO  in  vriOi  whalers— Are  :^miv«d  «a  bdarOia  laabeHa, 
Captain  Boaa'a  old  sl^»— Arrive  home— PnbUc  rcjoidnga  for  their  •p#9lE.B«mrda 
granted— BoaonMKrf  Captain  J<4m  BoasTa  services.  "^i^v. 

Captain  Back's  Land  Journey  in  search  of  Boss,  1833-34 168 

Attention  oaDed  t#  "^e  massing  expedition  by  Dr.  Bichardaon— Plans  of  relief  sog- 

Eed— PttbUc  meeting  held  to  consider  the  beat  meaaures— Ample  Ainda  raised— dv** 
k  volunteers— Leaves  England  with  Dr.  Kini^Voyageuraand j|uide«{&o., engaged 
in  Canada^Pkrty  push  through  ttib  northwest  country— Dreadfol  sumringa  from 
taisect  pists— Bearh  Fort  Besolntion,  on  Great  Slave  Lake— Motley  deser^tion  of  tho 
tvavelm  and  th^  encampment— Arrangementa  are  completed,  and  the  Journey  ki 
search  of  the  Great  Fish  Biver  cmnmenced— Frightftd  nature  of  the  precipiea8»  nq>- 
tdi,  flJb,  ravinaa,  &c.— Meet  with  old  aoqnaintancoa— OI>Uged  to  return  to  thnr  winter 
quarter*— Dreadflol  suffieringa  of  the  Indians — Famine  and  intense  cold — Noble  conduct 
of  AkaifclM^the  jndian  chief- Newa  reoeisod  of  Captain  Boae'a  safo  return  to  Eni^d 
— FranUia's  flAthfVil  Esquimaux  interpreter,  Auguatus,  endeavoring  to  Join  Back,  is 
Croxaa  ta  death— A  firesh -Journey  toward  the  sea  is  resolved  on— Provisions  for  three 
mo^tbs  taken— Indian  encampment— Oreon  Btocldngst  tlie  beauty— Interview  with  the 
chin,  Abaitrl>o— Arduous  and  periktus  progress  towardthe  sea— PUforing  propensi- 
ties of  tha  Ittdi^uia— Meet  with  a  large  friendly  tribe  of  ssquimaux— Beach  tlie  sea, 
andprocaed  aloni  the  coast  to  the  eastward,  unable  to  arrive  at  the  Point  Tumapdn 
3t  VraaffldSn— FUvatfona  of  the  parte  on  their  return  Journey— Difficultiea  enoouatwred 
fin  re-asceading  the  river— Beach  Fort  Beliance  after  four  montiia'  abaenco— Paaa  the 
winter  thera— Captain  Back  arrives  in  England  in  September,  after  an  abaenco  of 
tvro  |*ir4  and  a  hal^^lte.  Idbg.  foltowB  bim  in  the  Hudson 

Back's  Voyage  in  the  Terror  up  Hudson's  Strait,  1836 186 

'■-HBUp  arrives  at  Salisbury  bland— Procoada  up  Frozen'  Strait— ts  blocked  up  by  tho 
lee,  and  driven  about  poworieva  for  more  than  six  months— Cast  on  her  beam  enda 
BM'-tiraa'dhyt''"  From  dni  etimMt  sfat«  of  the  ship  and  the  insurmounUble  difficulties 
Tf  tha  navigation,  the  return  to  England  is  determined  on— Summary  of  Captain 
Back's  ar«>tic  services. 


*•■ 


r^ 


0  o  uri:  B  N 1*  s . 


i 


Mnsra  Dease  and  Siflopaon's  DiaooTCfloi  on  fhe  ooact  ofAretoa. 
AnAriw,  1886-ajr, „....4aT 


DwcMd  flM  liMluwris  to  Om  M»~San«y  «lM  WMl«ra  f««  «r  Om  rtiovw  ar  llarik 
4iimui»  item  IMnrn  BMf  to  Owe  Barrow— Diibwrar  two  mw  rtawM,  tketery 

•ad  CMvlUe— Aftav  rMching  BlMm  Bay,  ratom  to  wliitor  at  Foet  CaoMaaea,  «ir1lNM« 
Baar  T<ika  lliirWy  raaunaid  in  tha  aawiiiy  iprteg-- l)anyw)iia  raaJib  wi  tha  Oopitr- 
taia*  riwr— Eaaaaip  ai  itaoMmtlH-Osniw  OM  foiud  iMM— Vktoi^ 
and  140  milaa  of  naw  eoaat  tiaoad  Ma  anxint  of  tba  -  itffitn  iwliia  #if'»*'fni)<tf '  <li<Mit* 
abandoned,  and  tha  Barren  gcoaaidi  tramraad  on  Ibof  -^Md  aiioaerwfMtr  «(  fbrt 
Confidence— The  fidlowUic  aeaaon  a  tUrd  tojiv*  eonunenced— Bicha^daon'a  Biver 
axsniiii^-^Oaranatipa  0«tf  Ami  clear  of  lea  >■  Ceaat  anrTBir  toihe  laatwatiii  j^Mto* 
cuted-Hnmpion'a  Strait  diacovered— Back'a  l^atiurj  reached— Uepoait  of  preiwdoiia 
made  bf  Baokfhra  jeara  preriona,  ftnmd— Aberdei^  SliaBd,  ilia  ememApdat  MaclMd 
— Barta  of  eoeata  of  Bootbia  and  Victoria  Land  traced— One  of  tba  boataifaaadmiJ*— 
Daaeent  of  the  Coppermine,  and  aalb  arrival  at  fbtt  Confldance. 

pr.  JoBn  Bee's  Land  Expedition,  18l6-4'7 ., 


fludaon'a-Bi^  Oooapanj  diqpatoh  Baa  and  a  party  of  thirteen  men  to 
■arref  hetweenDeaaeandSfaanaon^fttrthaa^and  the  Fury  and  Beda  ( 
dition  leaiea  Ftot  Chnrehin— iCiaehea  Waner  Bivar— Boeta  taken  MToaa  Bae'a  Tatiimaa 

Weat  ahore  or  MaMBe  Penfaiiala, 


•^Winter  reddeaoe  oonatroctad— Short 
40.,  examined— Farty  retnm  to  their  enoam] 
Otatoiiy  of  £4M  awarded  to  Xkr.  Bae. 


it^  and  proeead  to  VoatCharehilk- 


0«»tMii  Sir  Jolin  Fnmklin'B  Last  Expedition  in  tile  Er^iui  iluiii' 
Tertw,  1845-51 ....,...|p6 

SrolNdiilili^  of  tlie  aaftiar  of  tlie  ezpeditien— MoolMnMry^  Snea  on  tBe-imprtwued 

enthodaam— Veraee— Heir  apneat  to  the  horOi— 


laaaiili    Taifr  Franldin'a  devotion  and  enl 

•far  B.  Bm>^a  <minion— Outfit  aa^idiapatoh  of  FranUfai'a  expedMiM— Kudea  of  the 
'  Tocl— Ontlfaie  of  Fraaidfaira  aerricea  Wottcea  of  the  aerricea  of  oihetr  of 
I  aent  ont  in  ISM— Diflhrent  voIuMMra  oflblr^AI^- 
liia  btaal  diqiatchea  and  latterai-Coimar  e^dera 
-Lettera  of  Cimtafai  Flt^amea-^-Oeaerai  toimooa  of 
•a  aa  to  Fnaitdtt's  aaftlgr— OiRir'df  aefVkSca  and  ang- 
piniona  of  O^rtafau  Farrjr  and  Jkaact  Boaeihereon— CiMiaalta> 
Imiralty— Report  of  the  Inrdrogrftpher—Jt^dTice  tendered  by 
UtotB  conaulted— Viewa  of  Mr.  Snow  and  Mr.  McLaan— PaMio  and  pttnito  vaii»arda 
omred  fbr  diacovery  and  aaaiatance  to  be  rendered— Second  refMrt  of  Adiniral  Baaofbrt 
to  the  Lotda  Oommiaaiattera  of  the  Adniralbr-^VMrioaa  }>rMPfad  dSSnli  letteraand 
diapatdliea^  pointfatr  out,  or  commentbig  on  plana  and  moctea  of  rwef— VlbundUwa  of 
aaliBaai  IbM  fbund  in  the  arctic  regiona— A  ba^lld  of  Sir  Johh  Ft'anUlii. 

The Oot^iunentand  private  Searcbing  Expeditions. .ilBl 

LW  of  tiie  veaaala  and  oommaBdera,  fte.,  new  emphiyad  on  th*  aaardi  in  the  wptta 
wgioaa   Noticea  of  tlioae  returned  hwne. 

Yoyai^  of  the  Enterprise  ai|d  Inrestigator  nnder  Oisptains  Sif  J'.  0, 
Rossand  B.  J.  Bint  1848-49   ......,-„... ♦,..*..381 

MHBea  of  flie  ofBewe  emfteyed  in  tfab-  etpedWon— Siilpa  arrire  at  UpBacnayfcK— 
Proceed  on  their  Toyage  Jftwee  a  'paaaage  nkroiigh  tiie  iea— BnteiT  minm^MWt^A— 
After  beina  driven  about  in  the  pack,  take  aheltor  fyr  the  wlnte^  in  tlie  harbor  Ofl'brt 
LeMtold^arveyinff  tripa  earried  on  down  flM  inlet,  and  riMind  Oft  nffird^evii  &d 
weetam  aboreH  of  Bnothia— VIoxee  traaped  and  libamted  with  edpyar  deOaril  MHVhry 
open  vrater-Beaet  by  tha  looee  pack,  and  fhe  temperature  MBtag,  the  wifiab  body  of 
lee  la  ibrroed  into  one  aoUd  maaa,  and  the  ahipa  are  driltad  with  the  fii^Ulo  jfiflh'a 
Bay— The  return  to  jBngland  determined  on— Oittliae  of  Stt  Junea  BOaa*i  irdaoua 
tervioer  in  the  polar  regiona.  _. 

Vojnffe  of  the  transport,  North  Sti^  18^ *...  .*i.« ^JNO 

liaaiaa  of  the  oOeanor  (ha  abip— OOdiddinatdi  ttati  Oa 


■? 


«**.*■»  *+v.  inv'  •.  w*  4«»S 


* 


.193 


a 


.381 


4N0 


•'•r'ti- 


eOMTSKTB. 


b«et  io  MB  loe-AOd  In  the  BortlMni  pwt  or  ■•flta/* : 

dfty*— Wintei k  te  Wolitoiibobiw  8o«nd— QMrth  ef  MifaMto  tliiri    gMp  ftto  timt  vt 

ice  and  miikea  ftw  T^ineuter  Sonad— The  XmUt  T^nakHn  and  Vriix  ere  laokM  i*ld»— 

Befaic  prewnted  bjr  the  ide  flrom  rMehibilf  Iwrt  Bowen  or  Vmt  Keil^  the  nrofUoaa 

triteaootte the MorthawMT^ieadediitHwyBoeKd later   !»■■»■  the Priaee Albert 

— B*«eivee  dtivetchee  tot  £nste&d— Betunu  home    CmnteiMT  flevadeneppotated 

tolUttaDoek-Twd. 

Second  voyage  of  Ae  EDtirpriM  and  ItiTertigator  nnidor  Oaptahi 
CoUiuaonand  Oommander  H'OInre,  1%M>... ^.294 

Names  of  oQeen  attadtedato  the  aUp*— Eo«diaa«K  hiterpretw  wpetohid  to  the 
iBterpriie— VeaaA  airrive  afrUM  BmMch  Idaade—EureMed  MmUmm^jja*} 


oianders  of  the  Teaiela— Shipe  veaoh  B^tehu^s  StraK-'Coimnvnioafle  with^p  Herald 
and  Plorer-^Iateit  dlipatchea  of  Captain  Coiamon  and  Commander  BfCtare— roaJtJQO 
ef  their  Ships. 

7oytt«  Q&  the  PloYer,  imd  Boat  Expedittona  under  Comnmnoer 
Men,  1848^51 W.. .307 

Purport  of  inatnuiioiH  iMMdltroai  the  Adnlral^--(Riip  arrina  lii  Bduriu's  Strait 

to  tiie  north  of  ttie  ttratt^Vtiten  In  Kotewae 

proeeed  in  boats  akng  tbeeoaat  to  the  Ifaektnxie 

I's  a^lpe— Letter  from  IJeiit  Booper— Latest  offi* 

intentions— Sir  John  Bkihardson's  adrioe. 


•Diwovers  newnandjoid  idands 
Bound— Lieutenant  Ptlien  and 
River— No  tidinga  gleaned  of 
«ial  diqwtch  from  Commander 


Voyage  of  the  Lady  Fitaklin  and  Sophia,  porehaaed  jovMiimeni 
anipo^  tnder  the  command  of  Mr.  Pminy. 319 

Mature,  of  the  instmotions  giTeo— Mating  Press  si4>plied— 8h^  sail  and  rcadi 
Wotatenlwiaie  Soond'-Pravented  bj.  the  ice  from  exanuning  Joaas'  Sound  Baiiili 
WeQingtoa  Oiannel,  and  are  left  there  Iqr  tb^piK«  Albert 

Voyage  of  the  Beeolate  and  Aasiatance, 
Anstin,  "c^ith  their  ateam  tendera,  Pi< 


Shipe'pWrehaaed  and  are  renamed  by  the  gov 

tions  glrea  to  search  WelUagton  Channel,  and  push  on  to 

Aspatch  from  Gqitaia  Omnansgp— MS.  nelvspi^r  started  en  board^ 
ExtHMrtar 


VoyM(e  d 
18^MU 


Sir  John  Boaa  in  tie  Fefix  private  adiponer 


31» 

•  ' 

la  fitted  out  bj  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  and  private  subeor^^tioii— Arrivaa  at 
W^halefish  lalandii^  and  owsrtakes  the  Admnee  and  Besoloto— Vroeeede^  In  company'— 
Esquimaux  reports  of  the  dsetructlea  of  FrankUa's  ships,  and  murder  of  the  creui^~ 
Proved  by  inVeatig&dan  to  be  devoid  of  lbundatk»-^LeMor  of  Sir  John  Boss  to  the 
Secretary  <<f  the  Admiralty. 

American  Qoyermuei^  Seardiinff  Espeditibn  in  the  ITnited  Statea 
ships  Advance  and  Rescue^  under  the  command  of  lieutenant  De 
Haven,  1850-51 .......^ 33S 

Ladv  FranltHn's  appeal  to  the  American  natiOD— Mr.  Clayton's  r^iy— Seeoad  letter 
of  Lady  Franldin  to  the  Preddeilt-SugJKtetions  of  lieutenant  S.  Osbom,  B.  N.— De« 
tmto  in  Congress— BeetdntioaB  anecd  to— Maniflcenoe  of  Mr.  B.  CMnneD— 8h^  tittsd 
out  and  diqiatclied— Names  of  Mkers  employed— IMqiatelies  from  the  coaunandar. 

Remarkable  Voyage  of  the  private  ship  Prince  Albert,  under  the 
command  of  Captain  Foniyth,  R.  N.,  to  Regent  Inlet  and  bacl^  - 
1850 aeiS 

Fitted  out  by  Lady  Franklin  and  by  private  subscription- Beasons  for  the,expeditta 
— OflOoers  and  crew— Discover  traces  of  Franklin— nil  in  with  other  shipe— VIrili 
Begaat  Bdefc— U  fbroed  to  reCum  home— Bemarks  on  this  Yoya|[e 


xu 


OOMTEHTS. 


The,  Amerioku  Gkimi«mbqMditioa  iaMMoh  ci  Sir  John  Frank-    "^' 

lin,  in  the  A^^enee  and  neeetie,  under  the  eonimand  of  jEjien- 

tenant  K  De  Haven,  in  the  ]f  ears  18£0-5^1 801 

OfBaon  at  the  Biq^moa  P^ogwilof  <li*  vojrtge— FInt  ettoonnter  with  an  lee* 
berg4-AefM  of  hrokoi  lo»— LMdlM  at  Wb«l«  Isteiid— Proenn  wtntor  clothing  and 
Bopplies  at  «  Danish  s^loment— Peiilona  positioa  of  the  Besene— Polar  bears— 
Open  sea-^Joine^  bj  the  Prinoe  Albert,  Boyal  navy— i^Mmson  OIKTs— Tremendoaa 
gale— ArUeles  h«<n«tiig  to  Fiankliufa  ahipa— Time  graves  at  Franklin's  men- 
Other  traees  of  the  missing^naTigator— Approaoh  of  the  Arette  winter— Battling 
with  ice — ^Extreme  perils— Five  tnonthe  in  the  ice— Aretio  amoaements  and  em* 
ploymeate— iffetio  algfat*-Be  appearanee  of  the  san-<-L1beration  of  the  iee-bonnd 
vesselMffartiMr  Btpleratioiis— Deelde  to  retwa— Arrival  at  the  JTavr  yard— XlTecta 
of  thepkpedlttofr-WlMTfiB  IN  THE  ABCfTIO  OCEAN  by  Ueatennt  De  Haren. 

A  Summer  Search  for  Sir  John  Franklin,  with  a  Peep  into  the 
Polar  Baeifl,  hy  Comniaiider  £.  A.  InkUfield,  in  we  Screw- 
steamer  Isabel*  in  1862. ^ .  I 411 

First  glimpae of  Qreealiiad— Biagalar  aeeideai— Rwuninatioiijnf  shotes  of  Wol- 
atenh<riine  Soiuid—Nortbamberland  Island— Point  Frederick  YIl— Appeanmee  of 
the  ioe— Viaib  the  grares  of  Franklin's  men  at  Beecdief  IsBsd— Diflkuitlea  of  ad* 
Taaeiag— ImS  of  spaia— The  retom  of  tt^  IsabaL 

Eighteen  Months  in  the  Polar-'Regions  in  search  of  Sir  John 
Franklin's  Ezpfditiop,  in  the  years  186(Hil,  by  lieutenant 
^    Sherard  Osborn,  with  the  Steam-yessels  Pioneer  and  Intrepid  421 

Dangers  of  mcborlaf  to  an  iee*berg— Satangled  in  the  pack— Eaten  Baffin'a  Bay— 
<!"XaaeMer  SouDa— Pbilospphy  of  iee-ber|p^BegenfsInbfe— Visit  to  Beeefaey  Island 
"ItOMagh  seaireh  of  that  Jdand^JBaits  Barlow's  luisi-r-Paiaiag  the  winter  in  the 
Ipations— ExpeAttiMMBiixed  in  the  spring— Visit  to  Jonea*  Bound— 
I  of  the  ^MHBUfte  fl^^Bftom  tutme. 


iAl 


k  Journal  c^  a  2oat  t 
«nd  the  Arotie  Sea,  in  search 
tin,  by  Sir  Joliii  Riehardson,  in  1861.. 


lir 


ontreal-^Desiilated  route— Int«monvse  with  thfBitalmaaz-^keteh 
aselllale 


of  Ibe  Esquintanz—Bussell  Inlet— Hurowby  Bay— Gape  Bi^H^^-Gmjo  Kj'ndali 

—Coppermine Blnr^]^abdidt  i|  I  ii  1 1     I  hii  ii'iiniil I  IlililWiiii     I  imli  i  dIUIiiii 

—Their  dilTerent  nwes  and  tribee— The  Kntchina— Fort  CoaflidMMe— Basil  Hall  Bay 
•   — Bear  Lake-'Betnm. 

The  Second  Voyage  of  the  Prince' Albert  in  seardi  of  Sir  John 

^^    Franklin,  under  the  eomsund  of  WllUani  Kennedy,  in  1868  461 

^'^'  Origin  of  this  expedition— The  outfit  and  instmetiona— IfelTille  BlQr— Prince  Be- 
^ent's  Inlet^Port  Leopold— Winter  qoartera  at  Whaler's  Point— Fury  Beach— Inoi* 
lents  dailng  the  winter-Owe  Oairy— Batty  Bay— Betom  to  Boglaad. 

Arctic  Explorations ;  the  Second  Qrinnell  Etpedition  in  search 
of  Sir  John  Franklin,  in  1868,  '64^  66,  by  Dr.  R  K.  Kane,  in 
the  brig  Advanoe. 478 

Outfit  and  P«1M«e  of  the  expedition- Visit  te  Dani  A  setUements  ot  Oreealand— 
nw  Crimson  CJiflh— Smith's  Sound— Discoreiy  of  the  Oreat  Hnmholdt  Olaeier— 
Butter  Island— Establishment  of  provision  depoU— Life  on  board  th«  brig^Ipoidents 
V  A^*J?J"'.^*''*i£'°*5«  icfr-Pertloas  expeditton— Further  examinatioB  of  Hum* 
Mdt  OkKsier-Wost  Land— Bobert  Mon*i  Bay- BMr-fight-Peejp  into  the  Polar 
Biaia- -View  of  nature  five  hundred  miles  from  the  North  Pole— Littleton  Islasdr- 
aepnd  winter  in  the- ice —Operations  in  the  spring^Exploration  of  Kennedy. Chan- 
nrt-Thlrdview  of  Humboldt  Glacier— Bear  hunts— Preparattuns  for  return— De* 
pmmriroin  Che  brlgT-(k>nveyanoe  of  the  sicWAnoatokr-filedge  Party— Perilous 
•drenture— Death  oTChristian  Qhlseu-rNorth  Barn's  Bay-rThe  embaritatioii-rOiS^ 


# 


CONTENTS. 


xiii 


ll««It  luivlgKtton— Mnrebtson  ChMiael— Narrow  eMape— Wear/  Mwi^s 
tU-glaet-  Osp«  York — Wut  of  proyislons — S««l  hnnt — Cowt  of  Orctnluii 
Kayak— Disoonnging  news— ArriTal  at  UperaaTlok— Captain  Hartstena's  l 
tloB  in  tbe  Atetlo  and  the  Relvaae— Adventuraaof  that  axpeditioB— Batorn  to 
BAviek  and  diaooroy  of  Dr.  Kane*a  p)-  *ty— Betnm  to  N«w  Tork. 


*<-. 
j--^ 


-J* 


# 


i*  .-'i 


*L 


# 


^' 


'-t^i»«i^V*i>«.'. 


(.:S4v'-fci.'-l   V-'-l*     -■£*■'*'* 


Au- 


"4 


TBM  PROGRESS 

?      Of 


ARCTIC  DISCOVERY 

HI  TBB 

OTNETEEiTTH  OENTUET.   _ 


Ir  W0  examine  a  map  of  Korth^rnf  or  Arctic,  Amer- 
ioa,  ehowing^wbat  was  known  of  tLe  commies  around 
the  Koi^li  JPole  hi*  th%  commencement  of  theMient 
centiliy,  w^  shall  find  that  all  within  the  Ar^lcircle 
was  a  complete  blank.  Mr.  fieame  had^  in^NH^  aeen 
the  Aitsl^Slea  in  the  year  ITTl ;  and  Hr.  Mackenzie  had 
traced  the  river  which  now  bears  his  name  to  its  junc- 
tion with  the  sea  r  but  not  a  single  line  of  ^e  coast 
from  lay  Cape  to  Baffin's  Bay  was  known.  The  east- 
em  and  western  shores  of  Greenland,  to  about  75^  lat- 
itude, w^  tolerably  well  defined,  u'om  the  visits  of 
whaling  vessels;  Hudson's  Bay  and  Strait  were  pai^ 
tially  known;  but  Baffin's  Bay,  iccording  to  the  state- 
ment of  Mr.  Baffin,  in  1616,  was  bounded  by  land  on 
the  west,  running  parallel  witii  the  90th  meridian  of 
longitude,  or  across  what  is  now  known  to  us  as  Bar- 
row's Strait,  and  probably  this  relation  led  to  the  sub- 
sequently, formed  hasty  opinion  of  Captain  Sir  John 
Ross,  as  to  his  visionary  Croker  Mountains,  of  which 
I  |hall  have  occasion  to  speak  hereafter. 

^As  early  as  the  year  152^7,  the  idea  of  a  passaffe  to 
tlie  East  indies  by  the  North  Pole  was  suggested  oy  a 


Mi 


26 


PBOOKESS    OF    AKCriC   DISCOVERT. 


Biiitol  merchant  to  Henry  VIII.,  but  no  voyage  seems 
to  have  been  undertaken  for  the  purpose  of  navigating 
the  Polar  seas,  till  the  commencement  of  the  following 
century,  when  an  expedition  was  fitted  out  at  the  ex- 
pense of  certain  merchants  of  London.  To  this  attempt 
several  others  succeeded  at  different  periods,  and  all 
of  them  were  pfojeoted  liud  eari'ied  into  execution  by 
private- individuals.  The  adventurers  did  not  indeed 
accomplish  the  object  they  exclusively  sought,  that  of 
reaching  India  by  a  nearer  route  than  doubling  , the 
Gape  -ot  Good  m>p^,  but  though  they  failed  m  that 
respect,  the  fortitude,  perseverance,  and  skill  which 
they  manifested,  exhibited  the  most  irrefragable  proofs 
of  the  early  existence  of  that^uperiority  in  naval  af- 
fairs,-which  has  elevated  thiT  country  to  her  present 
eminence  amonff  the  nations  of  Europe. 

*At  length,  after  the  lapse  of  above  a  <^ntur;^  and  a  \ 
half,  this  inisresting  .question  became  an  object  of 
Boyal  patronage^  and  the  expedition  which  was  com- 
mandtd  by  Captain  Phippslanerward  Lord  Mulgrave,) 
in  1^1^)  was  ntted  out  at  tne  thafge  of  Government. 
I^e  ll^  proposer  of  this  voyage  was  the  JBEon.  Baines 
Bwi^lpon,  F.  B.  S.,  whd;  with  indefatigable  assiduity, 
began  to  collect  every  fact  tending  to  establish  the 
practicability  of  circumnavigating  tne  Pole,  and  as  he 
accumulated  his  materials^  he  read  them  to  the  Boyal 
Society,  who,  in  consequence  of  these  representations, 
made  that  application  to  Lord  Sandwi^,  then  Pirst 
Lord  of  the  Admiralty,  which  led  to  the  appointment 
of  this  first  official  voyage.  Captain  Phipps,  however, 
fi>tind  it  impossible  to  penetrate  the  wall  of  ice  which 
extended  for  many  degrees  between  the  latitude  of  80® 
and  81°,  to  the  north  of  Spitzbe-f  ea.  His  vessels  were 
the  Bacehorse  and  Carcass;  Csptain  Lutwidge  being 
his  second  in  command,  in  the  U>tter  vessel,  and  hav- 
ing with  him,  tlien  a  mere  hoy,  Kelson,  the  future 
hero  of  England. 

From  the  year  1648,  when  the  flimous  Bnssian  m^h- 
gator,  Sendr  Deshnew,  penetrated  from  the  river 
iColyma  through  the  Polar  into  the  Pacific  Ocean,  tb^ 


♦      w**""^'- 

•#&;^ 


nrmoDuoTioN. 


37 


AuMiaos  have  been  as  ardoent  in  tlieii  Attempts  tc  dis* 
cover  a  northeast  passage  to  tbe  north  of  Cape  Shol* 
atskoi,  as  the  fingfish  have  been  to  sail  io  the  nortb 
west  of  the  ABfearican  Continent,  through  Baffin's  ^y 
and  Lancaster  Sound.  On  the  side  of  the  Pacific, 
many  efforts,  havej  within  the  last  centnrjs  been  mode 
to  further  this  object.  In  1741,  the  e^lebrated  Captain 
Behrinff  discovered  the  straits  which  bear  his  name,  as 
we  are  informed  bj  Hnller,  the  chronicler  of  Russian 
discoveries,  and  several  snbseqnent  commanders 
that  nation  seconded  his  endeavors  to  penetrate  fro: 
the  American  continent  to  the  northeast.  From  tl 
period  when  Deshnew  sailed  on  his  expedition,  to  the 
vear  1764,  when  Admiflil  Tchitschagof,  an  i^^^g** 
Die  and  active  officer,  endeavored  to  force  ir^llsage 
round  Spitzb^ergen,  (which,  although  he  attempted  Mth 
a  resolution  and  skill  which  womd  fall  to  the  lot  of 
few,  he  was  unable  to  effect,)  and  thence  to  the  present 
times,  indnding  the  arduous  efforts  of  Oaptain  Billingt 
and  Tancouver,  and  the  more  recent  one  bf  M.  JPri 
Wrangell,  the  Russians  have  been  untiring  in  tAfff  at^ 
tempts  to  di^over  a  passage  eastward,  to  tl^morth 
of  (Jape  Taimurand  Cape  Snelatskoi.  And  certainly, 
if  skill,  perseverance,  and  courage,  could  have  o^  wea 
this  passage,  it  would  have  been  accomplished. 

Soon  after  Ae  general  peace  of  Europe,  when  ^ar's 
alarms  had  given  way  to  the  hieh  pursuits  of  science, 
the  government  recommencecT  tne  lonff-«usponded 
work  of  proaecuting  discoveries  within  thaArctic  Oircle. 

An  expedition' was  dispatched  under  the  command 
of  Sir  John  Boss^n  order  to  explore  the  scene  of  the 
former  labora  of  Frobisher  and  Baffin.  Still  haunted 
with  the  golden  dreams  of  a  northwest  passage,  which 
Barrinffton  and  Beaufoy  had  in  the  last  age  so  enthu 
siasticdly  advocated,  our  nautical  adventurers  by  no 
means  relinquished  the  long-cherished  chimera. 

It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that  the  testimony  of 
Parry  and  Franklin  pass  for  much  on  the  other  sid^ 
of  the  question.  Both  these  officers,  whose  researches 
ifl  the  cause  of  scientific  discovery  entitle  then  ^  o  very 


^\-^. 


«^ 


38 


PB0OKE88  OF  ABOTIO  DnCOVEBY. 


liigli  respect,  have  deelared  it  at  their  opinion  thatT 
snoh  a  passM^  does  not  exist  to  the  north  of  the  T6tb 
dnnree  of  lantnde. 

Oaptain  Parrj,  in  the  eonohMling  remarks  of  his  first 
Toyage,  (vol.  ii.  p.  241,)  says — *^  Ca  the  existence  of  a 
northwest  passage  to  the  Pacific,  it  is  now  scarcely 
po8sii)le  U}  doabt,,and  from  the  sneeess  which  attended 
onr  efforts  in  1819,  after  passing  through  Sir  James 
Lancaster's  Sound,  we  were  not  unreasonable  in  anti 
ipatin^  its  complete  accomplishment,^'  &e.  And 
rankhn,  in  the  eleventh  chapter  of  his  work,  is  of  the 
me  opinion,  as  to  the  practicability  of  such  a  passage 
But  in  no  subsequent  attempt,  either  by  themselves 
or  otheia^  has  this  long  souglik  desideratum  been  ac- 
compl^nrod ;  impediments  and  barriers  seem  as  thickly 
thrown  in  its  way  as  ever.*  I 

An  expedition  was  at  length  undertidcen  for  the  sol« 
purpose  of  reaching  the  !North  Pole,  with  a  view  to 
the  ascertainment  of  philosophical  questions.  It  was 
pitted  an*!!  placed  under  the  command  of  Sir  Edward 
Par|^^  and  here  first  the  elucidation  of  phenomena 
eonflieted  with  this  imaginary  axis  <^/  our  planet 
formed  the  primary  object  of  investigation. 

Hy  space  and  purpose  in  this  wo&  will  not  permit 
me  to  ffo  into  detail  by  examininff  what  Barrow  justly 
terms  ^  those  brilliant  periods  of  early  English  enter- 
prise, so  conspicuously  displayed  in  every  quarter  of 
the  globe,  but  in  none,  probably,  to  greater  advantage 
than  in  those  bold  and  persevering  efforts  to  pierce 
through  frozen  seas,  in  their  little  slender  barks,  of  the 
most  miserable  description,  ill  provided  witii  the  means 
either  of  comfort  or  safety,  without '  charts  or  instni' 
ments,  or  any  previous  knowledge  of  the  cold  and  in^ 
hospitable  region  through  which  they  had  to  force  and-  -i 
to  reel  their  way ;  their  vessels  olt  beset  amidst  end* 
less  fields  of  ice,  and  threatened  to  be  overwhelmed 
with  instant  destruction  from  the  rapid  whirling  and 
bursting  of  those  huge  floating  masses,  Imown  by  thd 


Colonial  Magadne^  ^oL  iili.  fx  340 


■  r  A- J  'r 


IJSXKOUUCTIOA. 


leans 

ittni- 

id  in* 

and 

end- 

llnted 

and 

rthe 


m 


name  of  icebergs.  Yet  so  powerfully  infused  into  the 
qiinds  of  Britons  was  the  spirit  of  enterprise,  thai 
some  of  the  ablest,  the  most  learned,  and  most  respect* 
able  men  of  the  times,  not  only  lent  their  countenance 
and  supoort  to  expeditions  fitted  out  for  the  discovery 
of  new  lands,  but  strove  eagerly,  in  their  own  persons, 
to  share  in  the  glory  and  3ie  danger  of  every  daring 
adventure." 
To  the  late  Sir  John  Barrow,  F.  E.  S.,  for  so  long  a 

{)eriod  secretary  of  the  Admiralty,  and  who,  in  early 
ife,  himself  visited  the  Spitzber^n  seas,  as  high  as 
the  80^  parallel,  we  are  mainly  mdebted  for  the  ad- 
vocacy and  promotion  of  the  several  expeditions,  and 
the  investigations  and  inquiries  set  on  foot  in  t^e  pres^ 
ent  century,  and  to  the  vovages  which  have  been  nith- 
erto  so  successfully  carried  out,  as  regards  the  interests 
of  science  and  our  knowledge  of  the  Polar  regions. 

Although  it  is  absurd  to  impute  the  direct  responsi- 
bility for  these  expeditions  to  any  other  quarter  than 
the  several  administrations  during  which  they  were 
undertaken,  there  can  be  no  question  but  that  these 
enterprises  originated  in  Sir  John  Barrdw's  ab)e  and 
zealous  exhibition,  to  our  naval  authorities,  of  the 
several  facts  and  arguments  upon  which  they  might 
best  be  justified  and  prosecuted  as  national  objects. 
Thejgeneral  anxietv  now  prevailing  respecting  the  fate 
of  &  John  Franklin  and  his  gallant  companions, 
throws  at  this  moment  somewhat  of  a  sloom  on  the 
subject,  but  it  ought  to  be  remembered  that,  up  to  the 
present  period,  our  successive  Polar  voyages  have, 
without  exception,  given  occupation  to  the  energies 
and  gallantry  ofener^tic  seamen,  and  have  extended 
the  realms  of  magnetic  and  general  science,  at  an  ex- 
pense of  lives  and  money  quite  insignificant,  compared 
with  the  ordinary  dangers  and  casualties  of  such  expe- 
ditions, and,  that  it  must  be  a  very  narrow  spirit  and 
view  of  the  subject  which, can  raise  the  cry  of  ^^Oui 
bonOy^^  and  counsel  us  to  relinquish  th<^  honor  and  peril 
of  such  enterprises* 


IfO 


PROUREM   OF   AROTIO   DISOOTKRT. 


It  cftn  Boarcelv  be  deemed  ont  of  plaee  to  give  hM' 
a  Bhort  notice  of  the  literary  labors  of  this  excellent 
and  talented  man,  as  I  am  not  aware  that  such  an  out- 
line has  appeared  before. 

Sir  John  Barrow  was  one  of  the  chief  writers  for  the 
Qnarterly  Reriew,  and  his  articles  in  that  journal 
amount  to  nearly  200  in  number,  forming,  when  bound 
np,  twelve  separate  volumes.  All  those  relating  to 
the  Arctic  Expeditions,  &c.,  which  created  the  great- 
est interest  at  the  period  thev  were  published,  were 
from  his  pen,  and  consist  chieny  of  the  following  pa- 


pers, oommencinff  from  the  18th  volume ; — On  Polar 
Ice ;  On  Behring's  Straits  and  the  Polar  Basin ;  On 


Beach  the  Pole ;  Franklin's  Second  Expedition ;  Lyon's 
Voyage  to  Repulse  Bay ;  Back's  Arctic  Land  Expe- 
dition, and  his  Yoyage  of  the  Terror.  Besides  these 
he  published  "  A  Chronological  History  of  Vovages 
to  the  Arctip^  Seas,"  and  afterward  a  second  volume, 
"  On  the  Voyaffes  of  Discovery  and  Research  within 
the  Arctic  Regions." 

He  aUo  wrote  lives  of  Lord  Macartney,  2  vols.  4to ; 
of  Lord  Anson  and  HoWe,  each  1  vol.'  8vo ;  of  Peter 
the  Great;  and  an  Account  of  the  Mutiny  of  the 
Bounty,  (in  the  "Family  Library;")  "Travels  in. 
Southern  Africa,"  2  vols,  4to;  and  "Travels  in 
Ohina  and  Oochin  China,"  each  1  vol.  4:to. 

In  the  "Encyclopedia  Britannica"  are  ten  or' 
twelve  of  his  articles,  and  he  wrote  one  in  the  £din- 
burgh  Review  by  special  request. 

In  addition  to  these  Sir  John  Barrow  prepared  for 
the  press  innumerable  MSS.  of  travelers  in  all  parts 
of  thd  globe,  the  study  of  geography  being  his  great 
delight,  as  is  evidenced  by  his  having  founded  the 
Royal  Geographical  Society  of  London,  which  now 
holds  so  high  and  influential  a  position  in  the  learned 
and  scientific  world,  and  has  advanced  so  materially 
the  progress  of  discovery  and  research  in  all  parts  of 


IMTBOfHJOnON. 


M 


Ihe  fclob«  LmUv,  Sir  John  Barrow,  not  lonjo^  befot't 
bit  death,  publiihed  hit  own  avtobiography,  in  wbiUi 
he  records  the  labors,  the  toil^  and  adventare,  of  a  lor.g 
and  honorable  public  life. 

Sir  John  Barrow  has  dc«icribed,  with  Tolaminont  ca\e 
and  minute  research,  the  arduous  servioee  of  all  the 
chief  Arctic  Toyaffers  by  tea  and  land,  and  to  his  roi 
ume  I  must  refer  Uiose  who  wish  to  obtain  more  exten 
sive  details  and  particulart  of  the  voyages  of  preceding 
centuries*  He  has  also  graphically  set  forth,  to  use  bit 
own  words,  V  their  several  characters  and  conduct,  so 
uniformly  ditplayed  in  their  unflinching  perseverance 
in  difficulties  of  no  ordinanr  description,  their  patient 
endurance  of  extreme  suffering,  borne  without  mnr- 
muring,  and  with  an  equanimity  and  fortitude  of  mind 
under  the  most  appalling  distress^  rarely,  if  ever, 
equaled,  and  such  as  could  only  be  supported  by  a 
superior  degree  of  moral  courage  and  resignation  to 
the  Divine  will  —  displaying  virtues  like  those  of  no 
ordinary  caste,  and  such  as  will  not  fail  to  excite  the 
sympathy,  and  challenge  the  admiration  of  every  right- 
feeling  reader.'* 

Hakluyt,  in  his  "  Chronicle  of  Voyages,"  justly  ob- 
serves, that  we  should  use  much  care  in  preserving  the 
memories  of  the  worthy  acts  of  our  nation. 

The  different  sea  voyages  and  land  journeys  of  the 
present  century  toward  the  North  Pole  have  redounded 
to  the  honor  of  our  country,  as  well  as  reflected  credit 
on  the  characters  and  reputation  of  the  officers  engaged 
in  them ;  and  it  is  to  these  I  confine  my  observations. 

The  progress  of  discovery  in  the  Arctic  regions  has 
been  slow  out  progressive,  and  much  still  within  the 
limits  of  practical  navigation  remains  yet  unexplored. 
The  English  nation  very  naturally  wish  that  discov- 
eries which  were  first  attempted  by  the  adventurous 
spirit  and  maritime  skill  of  their  countrymen,  should 
be  finally  achieved  by  the  same  means. 

**  Wil  it  not,|'  says  the  worthy  *  preacher,'  Hakluyt, 
"  in  all  posteritie  be  as  great  a  renown  vnto  our  En- 
glish natione,  to  have  beene  the  first  discouerert  of  a 


•,-f* 


B2 


PIIOORE68  OF   AKOnO   DISCOVERY. 


Bea  Lcyond  the  North  Cape,  (nener  certainely  knowen 
before,)  and  of  a  conuenient  passage  into  the  huge  em* 
pire  of  Buesia  by  the  Baie  of  St.  Kicholas  and  of  the 
Kiuer  of  Duina,  as  for  the  Fortugales,  to  have  found 
a  sea  beyond  the  Cape  of  Buona  Esperanza,  and  so 
consequently  a  passage  by  sea  into  the  East  Indies  ? " 

I  cordially  agree  with  the  Quarterly  Review,  that 
"  neither  the  country  nor  the  naval  service  will  ever 
believe  they  have  any  cause  to  regret  voyages  which, 
in  the  eyes  of  foreigners  and  posterity,  must  confer 
lasting  honor  upon  both." 

The  cost  of  those  voyages  has  not  been  great,  while 
the  consequences  will  be  permanent ;  for  it  has  been 
well  remarked,  by  a  late  writer,  that  "the  record  of 
enterprising  hardihood,  physical  endurance,  and  steady 
perseverance,  displayed  in  overcoming  elements  the 
most  adverse,  will  long  remain  among  the  worthiest 
memorials  of  human  enterprise."  * 

"  How  shall  I  admire, "  says  Purchas, "  your  heroic 
courage,  ye  marine  worthies,  beyond  all  names  of 
worthiness!  that  neyther  dread  so  long  eyther  the 
presence  or  absence  of  the  sunne ;  nor  those  foggy 
mysts,  tempestuous  winds,  cold  blasts,  snowe  and 
hayle  in  the  ayre ;  nor  the  unequall  seas,  which  might 
amaze  the  hearer,  and  amate  the  beholder,  when  the 
Tritons  and  Neptune's  selfe  would  quake  with  chilling 
feare  to  behold  such  monstrous  icie  ilands,  renting 
themselves  with  terror  of  their  own  massines,  and  dis- 
dayning  otherwise  both  the  sea's  sovereigntie  and  the 
Bunne's  hottest  violence,  mustering  themselves  in  those 
watery  plaines  where  they  hold  a  continual  civill 
warre,  and  rushing  one  upon  another,  make  windes 
and  waves  give  backe ;  seeming  to  rent  the  eares  of 
others,  while  they  rent  themselves  with  crashing  and 
splitting  their  congealed  armors." 

So  thickly  are  the  Polar  seas  of  the  northern  hemi- 
sphere clustered  with  lands,  that  the  long  winter  months 
serve  to  accumulate  filed  ice  to  a  prodigious  extent,  so 
as  to  form  an  almost  impenetrable  barrier  of  hyper 
borean  frost —  ,:. 


/>i  INTRODUCnON.        ^'^'* 


83 


«» 


*  A  crystal  pavement  by  the  breatii  of  Haaren 
Cemented  finn." 

Although  there  are  now  no  new  continents  left  to 
discover,  our  intrepid  British  adventurers  are  but  too 
eager  to  achieve  the  bubUe  reputation,  to  hand  down 
their  names  to  future  ages  for  patient  endurance,  zeal, 
and  enterprise,  by  explprations  of  the  hidden  mys- 
teries of — 


"the  frigid  zone, 
When,  for  relentlew  months  continual  ni|[bt 
Holds  o'er  the  glittering  waste  her  stany  light ; " 


*: 


bj  undergoi^  perils,  and  enduring  privations  and 
dangers  which  the  mind,  in  its  reflective  moments, 
shudders  to  contemplate.  * 

It  is  fair  to  conjecture  that,  so  intense  is  the  cold, 
and  so  limited  the  summer,  and  consequently  so  short 
the  time  allowed  for  a  transit  within  the  Arctic  circle, 
from  Baffin's  Bay  to  Behring's  Straits,  that  a  passage, 
even  if  discovered,  will  never  be  of  any  use  as  a  chan- 
nel. It  is  not  likely  that  these  expeditions  would  ever 
have  been  persevered  in  with  so  much  obstinacy,  had 
the  prospects  now  opening  on  the  world  of  more  prac- 
ticable connections  with  the  East  been  known  forty 
years  ago.  Hereafter,  when  the  sacred  demands  of ' 
humanity  have  been  answered,  very  little  more  will 
be  heard  about  the  northwest  passage  to  Asia ;  which, 
if  ever  found,  must  be  always  hazardous  and  pro- 
tracted, when  a  shojt  and  quick  one  can  be  accom- 
plished by  railroads  through  America,  or  canals  across 
the  Isthmus. 

A  thorough  knowledge  of  the  relative  boundaries  of 
land  and  ocean  on  this  our  globe  has,  in  all  ages  and 
by  all  countries,  been  considered  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant desiderata,  and  one  of  the  chief  features  of 
popular  information. 

feut  to  no  country  is  this  knowledge  of  such  prac- 
tical utility  and  of  such  essential  importance,  as  to  a 
maritime  nation  like  Great  Britain,  whose  mercantile 
marine  visits  every  port,  whose  insular  position  ren- 
ders her  completely  dependent  upon  distant  quarters 
3 


84 


PROGRESS  6P  arctic  DISCOVERT. 


for  half  the  necessary  supplies,  whether  of  food  or  lux- 
ury, which  her  native  population  consume,  or  which 
the  arts  and  manufactures,  of  which  she  is  the  empori 
um,  require.  h* 

With  a  vast  and  yearly  increasing  dominion,  cover- 
ing almost  every  region  of  the  hahitahle  glohe, — the 
chart  of  her  colonies  being  a  ichart  of  the  world  in  out- 
line, sweeping  the  globe  and  touching  every  shore, — it 
becomes  necessary  that  she  should  keep  pace  with  the 
progress  of  colonization,  by  enlarging,  wherever  pos- 
sible, her  maritime  discoveries,  completing  and  veri- 
fy inii:  our  nautical  surveys,  improving  1 A  meteorologi- 
cal researches,  opening  up  new  and  speedier  periodical 
pathways  over  the  oceans  which  were  formerly  trav- 
ersed with  so  much  danger,  doubt,  and  difficulty,  and 
maintaining  her  superiority  as  the  greatest  of  maritime 
nations,  by  sustaining  that  high  and  distinguished  rank 
for  naval  eminence  which  has  ever  attached  to  the 
British  name. 

The  arduous  achievements,  however,  of  her  nautical 
discoveries  have  seldom  been  appreciated  or  rewarded 
as  they  deserved.  She  loads  her  naval  and  military 
heroes — the  men  who  guard  her  wooden  walls  and 
successfully  fight  her  battles — with  titles  and  pen- 
sions ;  she  heaps  upon  these,  and  deservedly  so,  prince- 
ly remuneration  and  all  manner  of  distinctions ;  but 
for  the  heroes  whose  patient  toil  and  protracted  endu- 
rance far  surpass  the  turmoil  of  ^war,  who  peril  their 
lives  in  the  cause  of  science,  many  of  whom  fall  vic- 
tims to  pestilential  climes,  famine,  and  the  host  of  dan- 
gers which  environ  the  voyager  and  traveler  in  unex- 
plored lands  and  unknown  seas,  she  has  only  a  place  in 
the  niche  of  fame. 

What  honord  did  England,  as  a  maritime  nation,  con- 
ifer on  Cook,  the  foremost  of  her  naval  heroes, — a  man 
whose  life  was  sacrificed  for  his  country  ?  His  widow 
had  an  annuity  of  200^.,  and  his  surviving  children 
25^.  each  per  annum.  And  this  is  the  reward  paid  to 
the  most  eibinent  of  her  naval  discoverers,  before 
whom  Cabot,  Drake,  Frobisher,  Magollan^  Anson,  and 


INTRODUCTION. 


as 


or  lux- 

which 

empori 

,  cover- 
(e, — tho 
[  in  out- 
ore, — ^it 
vith  the 
^er  pos- 
ad  veri- 
jorologi- 
)riodical 
rly  trav- 
ilty,  and 
aaritime 
led  rank 
i  to  the 

nautical 
ewarded 
military 
alls  and 
ind  pen- 
|,  prince- 
•ns;  but 
id  endu- 
ril  their 
fall  vic- 
of  dan- 
n  unex- 
Iplace  in 

Ion,  con- 
-a  man 
widow 

jhildren 

paid  to 

before 

^on,  and 


the  arctic  adventurers,  Hudson  and  Baffin,  —  although 
all  eminent  for  their  discoveries  and  the  important 
services  they  rendered  to  the  cause  of  nautical  sci- 
ence,  —  sink  into  insig&ificance !  If  we  glance  at  the 
residts  of  Cook's  voyages  we  find  that  to  him  we  are 
indebted  for  the  innumei'able  discoveries  of  islands  and 
colonies  planted  in  the»  Pacific ;  that  he  determined 
the  conformation,  and  surveyed  the  numerous  bays 
and  inlets,  of  New  Holland ;  established  the  geogra- 
phical position  of  the  northwestern  shores  of  America ; 
ascertained  the  trending  of  the  ice  and  frozen  shores  to 
the  north  of%ehring's  Straits ;  approached  nearer  the 
South  Pole,  and  made  more  discoveries  in  the  Austra- 
lian regions,  than  <r^ll  the  navigators  who  h^d  preceded 
him.  On  the  very  shores  of  their  vast  empire,  at  the 
extremity  ^f  Kamtschstka,  his  active  genius  first 
taught  the  Russians  to  examine  the  devious  trendings 
of  the  lands  which  border  the  Frozen  Ocean,  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  Arctic  circle.  He  explored  both 
the  eastern  and  western  coasts  above  Behrnff's  Straits 
to  so  high  a  latitude  as  to  decide,  beyond  doubt,  the 
question  as  to  the  existence  of  a  passage'round  the  two 
continents.  He  showed  the  Russians  how  to  navigate 
the  dangerous  seas  between  the  old  and  the  new 
world ;  for,  as  Goxe  has  remarked,  ^'  before  his  time, 
every  thing  was  uncertain  and  confused,  and  though 
they  had  undoubtedly  reached  the  continent  of  Amer- 
ica, yet  they  had  not  ascertained  the  line  of  coast,  nor 
the  separation  or  vicinity  of^e  two  continents  of  Asia 
and  America."  Coxe,  certainly,  does  ho  more  than 
justice  to  his  illustrious  countryman  when  he  adds, 
"  the  solution  of  this  important  problem  was  reserved 
for  our  great  navigator,  and  every  Engli  hman  must 
exult  that  the  discoveries  of  Cook  were  extended  fur 
ther  in  a  single  expedition,  and  at  the  distance  of  half 
the  globe,  than  the  Russians  accomplished  in  a  long 
series  of  years,  and  in  a  region  contiguous  to  their  own 
empire." 

Look  at  Weddell,  again,  a  private  tiUder  in  seal- 
eb'ns,  who,  in  a  frail  bark  if  160  tons,  made  important 
B 


■^^- 


36 


TROGRESS   OF  AEOTIO   DISCOVERY. 


discoveries  in  the  Antarctic  circle,  and  a  voyage  of 
greater  length,  and  peril,  through  a  thousand  miles  of 
ice,  than  had  previously  been  performed  hy  any  navi- 
gator, paving  the  way  for  the  more  expensively  fitted 
.  expedition  under  Sir  Jmnes  Ross.  Was  "Weddell  re- 
munerated on  a  scale  commensurate  with  his  important 
services?  ♦ 

Haifa  century  ago  the  celebrated  Bruce  of  Kinnaird, 
by  a  series  of  soundings  and  observations  taken  in  the 
Red  Sea,  now  the  great  highway  of  overland  eastern 
traffic,  rendered  its  navigation  more  secure  and  punc*- 
tnal.  How  was  he  rewarded  by  the  then^bcisting  min- 
istry? 

Take  a  n^ore  recent  instance  in  the  indefatigable 

..  energy  of  Lieutenant  Waghorn,  R.  N.,  the  entei^prising 

pioneer  of  the  overland  route  to  India.    What  does  not 

the  commerce,  the  character,^  the  reputation,  of  his 

^  country  owe  to  his  indefatigable  exertions,  in  bringing 

'  the  metropolis  into  closer  connection  with  her  vast  and 

important  Ihdian  empire  ?    And  what  was  the  reward 

he  received  for  the  sacrifices  he  made  of  time,  money, 

health  and  life*?    A  paltry  annuity  to  himself  of  100?., 

and  a  pension  to  his  widow  of  251.  per  annum  I 

Is  it  creditable  to  her  as  the  firet  naval  power  of  the 
worl4  that  she  should  thus  dole  out  miserable  pittances, 
or  entirely  overlook  the  successful  patriotic  exertions 
and  scientific  enterprises  and  discoveries  of  private 
adventurers,  or  public  commanders  ? 

The  attractions  of  a  suralaer  voyage  along  the  bays 
and  seas  wheri^  the  sun  shines  for  four  months  at  a  time, 
exploring  the  bare  rocks  and  everlasting  ice,  with  no 
companion  but  the  white  bear  or  the  Arctic  fox,  may 
be  all  very  romantic  at  a  distance ;  but  the  mere  thought 
of  a  winter  residence  there,  frozen  fast  in  some  solid 
ocean,  with  snow  a  dozen  feet  deep,  the  thermometer 
ranging  from  40°  to  50°  below  zero,  and  not  a  glimpse 
of  the  blessed  sun  from  November  to  February,  is 
enough  to  give  a  chill  to  all  adventurous  notions.  But 
the  officers  aftd  men  engaged  in  the  searching  expedi- 
tions after  Sir  John  Franklfc  have  calmly  weighed  all 


mr 


ft 


FIB8T   VOYAGE   OF   OAriAlN    ItOSa. 


37 


these  difficulties,  and  boldly  gone  forth  to  encounter 
the  perils  and  dangers  of  these  icy  seas  for  the  sake  of 
their  noble  fellow-sailor,  whose  fate  has  been  so  long  a 
painful  mystery  to  the  world. 

It  has  been  truly  observed,  that  ^^  this  is  a  service 
for  which  all  officers,  howevef  brave  and  intelligent 
they  may  be,  are  not  equally  qualified ;  it  requires  a 
peculiar  tact,  an  inquisitive  and  persevering  pursuit 
after  details  of  fact,  not  always  interesting,  a  contx  mpt 
of  danger,  and  an  enthusiasm  not  to  be  damped  oy 
ordinary  difficulties." 

The  records  which  I  shall  have  to  give  in  these  pages 
of  voyages  and  travels,  unparalleled  in  their  perils, 
their  duration,  and  the  protracted  sufferings  which 
many  of  them  entailed  on  the  adventurers,  will  bring 
out  in  bolcb^  relief  the  prominent  characters  who  have 
figured  in  Arctic  Discovery,  and  whose  names  will 
descend  to  posterity,  emblazoned  on  the  scroll  of  fame, 
for  their  bravery,  their  patient  endurance,  their  skill, 
and,  above  all,  their  firm  trust  and  reliance  on  that 
Almighty  Being  who,  although  He  may  have  tried 
them  sorely,  has  never  utterly  forsaken  them. 

Oapt.  Jqeh  Ross's  Voyage,,  1818. 

In  1818,  His  Eoyal  Highness  the  Prince  Hegent 
having  signified  his  pleasure  that  an  attemp'  should 
be  made  to  find  a  passage  by%ea  between  the  Atlantic 
and  Pacific  Oceans,  the  Lords  Commissioners  of  the 
Admiralty  were  pleased  to  fit  out  four  vessels  to  pro- 
ceed toward  the  Korth  Pole,  under  the  command^  of 
Captain  John  Ross.  Nofprmer  expedition  had  been 
fitted  out  on  so  extensive  a  scale,  or  so  completely 
equipped  in  every  respect  as  this  one.  The  circum- 
stance which  mainly  led  to  the  sending  out  of  these 
vessels,  was  the  open  character  of  the  bays  and  seas 
in  those  regions,  it  having  been  observed  for  the  pre- 
vious three  years  that  very  unusual  quantities  of  the 
polar  ice  had  floated  down^to  the  Atlantio.     In  the 


88 


TROGRESS   OF  AUCHO  DISCOVlCKr. 


year  1817,  Sir  John  Barrow  relates  that  the  east^'ni 
coast  of  Greenland,  which  had  been  shut  np  with  ice 
for  four  centuries,  was  found  to  be  accessible  from, the 
70th  to  the  80th  degree  of  latitude,  and  the  interme- 
diate sea  between  it  and  Spitzbergen  was  so  entirely 
open  in  the  latter  parallel,  tnat  a  Hamburgh  ship  had 
Actually  sailed  alon^  this  track. 

On  the  16th  of  January,  1818,  the  four  ships  were 
put  in  commission  —  the  Isabella,  385  tons,  and  the 

*  Alexander,  252  tons  — under  Captain  Ross,  to  proceed 
up  the  middle  of  Pavis'  Strait,  to  a  high  northern  lati- 
tude, and  then  to  stretch  across  to  the  westward,  in 
the  hope  of , being  able  to  pass  the  northern  extremity 
of  Am'erica,  and  reach  Behring's  Strait  by  that  route. 

♦  Those  destined  for  the  Polar  sea  were,  the  Dorothea, 
382  tons,  and  the  Trent,  249  tons,  which  wcJfte  ordered 
to  proceed  between  Greenland  and  Spitzbergen,  and 
seek  a  passage  through  an  open  Polar  sea,  if  such 
should  bo  found  in  that  direction. 

I  shall  take  these  voyages  in  the  order  of  their  pub- 
lication, Eqss  having  given  to  the  world  the  account 
of  his  voyage  shortly  after  his  return  in  1819 :  while 
the  narrative  of  the  voyage  of  the  Dorothea  and  Trent 
was  only  published  in  1843,  by  Captain  Beechey,  who 
served  as  Lieutenant  of  the  Trent;  during  the  voyage. 

The  following  were  the  officers,  &c.,  of  the  ships 
under  Captain  Koss :  — 


IsSbeUa. 


N*i 


Captain — Johnlloss. 

Lieutenant — W.  Robertson. 

Purser  — "W.Thom. 
" Surgeon  —  John  Edwards.  ^^ 

Assistant  Surgeon — C.  J.  Beverley. 

Admirals  Midshipmen — A.  M.  Skene  and  James 
^     Clark  Boss.        .  ,  t  r 

Mid8hipm9.n  and  Clerk — J.  Bushnan.  *  ^^ 

Greenland  Pilots  —  B.  Lewis,  master- ;  i".  Wilcox, 
mate.  j^ 

Captain  (now  Colonel)  l^bine,  K.  A. 


IIBST   VOYAGE  OF  CAPTAIN   ROSS. 

# 

45  potty  officers,  seamen,  and  ^narines. 
^Whole  complement,  57. 

Alexander, 

Lieutenant    and    Commander — "William   Edward 

Parry,  (now  Captain  Sir  Edward.) 
Lieutenant— H.  H.  Hoopner,  (a  first  rate  artist.) 

*  Purser  —  W.  H.  Hooper. 

Greenland  Pilots  —  tf.  Allison;  master ;  J.  Philips 
••      mate. 

Admiralty  Midshipmen — P.  Bisson  and  J.Kius. 
^  Assistant  Surgeon — A.  Fisher. 

Clerk — J.  Halse. 

*  28  petty  officers,  seamen,  &c.  - , 

^  "Whole  complement,  37. 

'  On  the  2d  of  May,  the  four  vessels  being  reported 
fit  f<5r  sea,  rendezvoused  in  Brassa  Sound,  Shetland, 
and  the  two  expeditions  parted  company  on  the  follow- 
ing day  for  their  respective  destinations. 

On  the  26th,  the  Isabella  fell  in  with  the  first  ice- 
berg, which  appeared  to  be  about  forty  feet  high  and 
a  thousand  feet  long.  It  is  hardly  possible  to  imagine 
any  thing  more  exquisite  than  the  variety  of  tints  which 
these  icebergs  display ;  by  night  as  well  as  by  day  they 
glitter  with  a  vividness  of  color  beyond  the  power  of 
art  to  represent.  "While  the  white  portions  have  the 
brilliancy  of  silver,  their  colors  are  as  various  and 
splendid  as  those  of  the  rainbow ;  their  ever-changing 
disposition  producing  effects  as  singular  as  they  are 
new  and  interesting  lj  those  who  have  not  seen  them 
before. 

On  the  17th  of  June,  they  reached  "Waygatt  Sound, 
beyond  Disco  Island,  where  they  found  forty-five 
whalers  detained  by  the  ice.  "Waygatt  Island,  from 
observations  taken  on  shore,  was  found  to  be  6°  longi- 
tude and  30  miles  of  latitude  from  the  situation  as  laid 
down  in  the  Admiralty  Charts. 

They  were  not  able  to  get  away  from  here  till  the 
20th,  when  the  ice  began  to  break.   By  cutting  passages 


\\ 


40 


PROGRESS  OP  ARCmC  DISCOVERT. 


through  the  ice,  and  by  dint  of  towing  and  warping, 
a  slow  progress  was  made  with  tUe  ships  until  the 
17th  of  July,  when  two  ice-floes  closing  in  upon  them, 
threatened  inevitable  destruction,  and  it  was  only  by 
the  greatest  exertions  that  they  hove  through  into  open 
water.  The  labors  of  warping,  towing,  and  tracking 
were  subsequently  very  severe.  This  tracking,  al- 
though hard  work,  afforded  great  amusement  to  the 
men,  giving  frequent  occasion  for  the  exercise  of  their 

•  wit,  when  some  of  the  men  occasionally  fell  in  through 
holes  covered  with  snow  or  weak  parts  of  the  ice. 

Very  high  mountains  of  land  and  ice  were  seen  to 
the  north  side  of  the  bay,  which  he  named  Melville's 
Bay,  forming  an  impassable   barrier,  the  precipices 

'  next  the  sea  being  from  1000  to  2000  feet  high. 

On  the  29th  of  June,  the  Esquimaux,  Johimacheuse, 
who  had  accompanied  the  expedition  from  England' as 
interpreter,  was  sent  on  shore  to  communicate  with 
the  natives.  About  a  dozen  came  off  to  visit  the  ship, 
and,  after  being  treated  with  coffee  and  biscuit  in  the 
cabin,  and  having  their  portraits  taken,  they  set  to 
dancing  Scotch  reels  on  the  deck  of  the  Isabella  with 
the  sailors.  • 

Captain  Ross  gives  a  pleasant  description  of  this 
scene  — "  Sacheuse's  mirth  and  joy  exceeded  all 
bound?;  and  with  a  good-humored  omciousness,  justi- 
fied by  the  important  distinction  which  his  superior 
knowledge  now  gave  him,  he  performed  the  omce  of 
master  of  the  ceremonies.  An  Esquimaux  M.  C.  to  a 
ball  on  the  deck  of  one  of  H.  M.  snips  in  the  icy  Bees 
of  Greenland,  was  an  office  somewhat  new,  but  Nash 
himself  could  not  have  performed  his  functions  in  a 
manner  more  appropriate.  It  did  not  belong  even  to 
Nash  to  combine  in  his  own  person,  like  Jack,  the  dis- 
cordant qualifications  of  seaman,  interpreter,  draughts- 
man, and  master  of  ceremonies  to  a  ball,  with  those 
of  an  active  fisher  of  seals  and  a  hunter  of  white  bears. 
A  daughter  of  the  Danish  resident  (by  in  Esquimaux 
woman,)  about  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  by  far  tho 
best  looking  of  the  lialf-caste  group,  was  the  object  of 


FIUST   VOYAOB   OF  OAPTAIN   R08B. 


Jack's  particular  attentions ;  which  being  observed  by 
one  of  our  officers,  he  gave  him  a  lady's  shawl,  orna- 
mented with  spangles,  as  an  offering  for  hei  ceptance. 
He  presented  it  in  a  most  respectful,  and  not  ungrace- 
ful manner  to  the.  damsel,  who  bashfully  took  a  pew- 
ter ring  from  her  finger  and  gave  it  to  nim  in  return, 
rewarding  him,  at  the  same  time,  with  an  eloquent 
smile,  which  could  leave  no  doubt  on  our  Esquimaux's 
mind  that  he  had  made  an  impression  on  her  heart."^ 
On  the  5th  of  August  the  little  auks  (Mergulfus  alle,) 
were  exceedingly  abundant,  and  many  were  shot  for 
food,  as  was  also  a  large  gull,  two  feet  five  inches  in 
length,  which,  when  killed,  disgorged ^one  of  these 
little  birds  entire. 

A  fortnight  later,  on  two  boats  being  sent  from  the 
Isabella  td^procure  as  many  of  these  birds  as  possible, 
for  the  purpose  of  preserving  them  in  ice,  they  re- 
turned at  midnight  with  a  boat-load  of  about  1500, 
having  on  an  average,  killed  fifteen  at  each  shot.  The 
boats  of  the  Alexander  were  nearly  as  successful. 
These  birds  were  afterward  served  daily  to  each  man, 
and,  among  other  ways  of  dressing  them,  they  were 
found  to  make  excellent  soup  —  not  inferior  to  hare 
soup.  Not  less  than  two  hundred  auks  were  shot  on 
the  6th  of  August,  and  served  out  to  the  ships'  compa- 
nies, among  whose  victuals  they  proved  an  agreeable 
variety,  not  having  the  fishy  flavor  that  might  be  ex- 
pected from  their  food,  which  consists  of  Crustacea^ 
small  fishes,  mollusca,  or  marine  vegetables. 

On  the  7th  of  August  the  ships  were  placed  in  a 
most  critical  situation  by  a  gale  of  wind.  The  Isabella 
was  lifted  by  the  pressure  of  ice  floes  on  each  side  of 
her,  and  it  was  doubted  whether  the  vessel  could  long 
withstand  the  grips  and  concussions  she  sustained; 
"  every  support  threatened  to  give  way,  the  beams  in 
the  hold  began  to  bend,  and  the  iron  water-tanks 
settled  together.  The  two  vessels  were  thrown  with 
violent  concussion  against  each  other,  the  ice-anchors 


^•. 


■i"^' 


2* 


Vol.  I,  p  67,  C8. 


■J1 


/■ 


W  PBOORESS  OF  ABCnO  DISOOTEBT. 

and  cables  broke  one  after  the  other,  a  boat  at  the 
stem  was  smashed  in  the  collision,  and  the  masts 
were  hourly  expected  to  go  by  the  board ;  but  at  this 
juncture,  when  certain  destruction  was  momentarily . 
looked  for,  by  the  merciful  interposition  of  Providence 
the  fields  of  ice  suddenly  opened  and  formed  a  clear 
passage  for  the  ships." 

A  singular  physical  feature  was  noticed  on  the  part 
of  the  coast  near  Cape  Dudley  Digges : —  "  We  have 
discovered,  (says  Boss,)  that  the  snow  on  the  face  of 
the  cliffs  presents  an  appearance  both  novel  and  inter- 
esting, bemg  apparently  stained  or  covered  by  some 
substance  wnjcn  gave  it  a  deep  crimson  color.  This 
snow  was  penetrated  in  many  places  to  a  depth  of  ten 
or  twelve  leet  by  the  coloring  matter."  Tlwre  is  noth- 
ing new,  however,  according  to  Barrow,  in^e  discov- 
ery of  red  snow.  Pliny,  and  other  writers  oi  his  time 
mention  it.  Saussure  found  it  in  various  parw  of  the 
Alps  ;  Marun  found  it  in  Spitzbergen,  and  no  doubt 
it  IS  to  be  met  with  in  most  alpine  regions. 

In  the  course  of  this  tedious,  and  often  laborious 
progress  through  the  ice,  it  became  necessary  to  keep 
the  whole  of  the  crew  at  the  most  fatiguing  work,  some- 
times for  several  days  and  nights  Arithout  intermission. 
When  this  was  the  case,  an  extra  meal  was  served  to 
them  at  midnieht,  generally  of  preserved  meat ;  and 
it  was  found  that  this  nourishment,  when  the  mind 
and  body  were  both  occupied,  and  the  sun  continually 
present,  rendered  them  capable  of  remaining  without 
sleep,  so  that  they  often  passed  three  days  in  this  man- 
ner without  any  visible  inconvenience,  returning  after 
a  meal  to  their  labor  on  the  ice  or  in  the  boats  quite 
refreshed,  and  continuing  at  it  without  a  murmur. 

After  making  hasty  and  very  cursory  examinations 
of  Smith's  and  Jones'  Sounds,  Boss  arrired,  on  the 
80th  of  August,  off  the  extensive  inlet,  named  by  Baf- 
fin, Lancaster  Sound,  The  entrance  was  perfectly 
clear,  and  the  soundings  ranged  from  650  to  1000  fath 
oms.  I  shall  now  quote  Ross's  own  observations  oi. 
this  subject,  because  from  bis  unfortunate  report  of  a 


FXBBT  YOYAOB  OF  CAPTAIN   ■'  <«. 


range  called  the  Croker  mountaiiyif  #t]«tching  aoroM 
this  Strait,  has  resulted  much  of  the  ridicule  and  die 
credit  which  has  attached  to  his  accounts,  and  clouded 
his  early  reputation  ^-  *•*'  On  the  3lBt  (he  says)  w#  dis- 
covered, for  the  fiist  time,  thit  the  land  extended  from 
the  south  two-thirds  across  this  apparent  Strait ;  but 
the  fog  which  cObtinuaUy  occupiea  that  quarter,  ob< 
Bcurea  its.  real  figure.  !During  the  day  much  interest 
was  excited  on  IxMird  by  the  appearance  of  this  Strait. 
The  general  opinion,  however,  was,  that  it  was  only  an 
inlet.  The  land  was  partially  seen  extending  across ; 
the  yellow  sky  was  perceptible.  At  a  little  iSfore  four 
o'clock  A.  M.,  the  hmd  was  seen  at  the  bottom  of  the 
inlet  by  the  officers  of  the  watch,  but  before  I  got  on 
deck  a  space  of  about  seven  degrees  of  the  compass 
was  obscured  by  the  fog.  The  land  which  I  then  saw 
was  a  high  rid^  of  mountains  extending  directly  across 
the  bottom  of  the  inlet  This  chain  appeared  extremely 
high  in  the  center.  Although  a  passage  in  this  direc- 
tion appeal  od.liopeless,  I  was  determined  to  explore  it 
completely.  I  therefore  continued  all  sail.  Mr.  Bev- 
erly, the  surgeon,  who  was  the  most  sanguine,  went  up 
to  the  crOw's  nest,  and  at  twelve  reported  ±p  nord  that 
before  it  became  thick  he  had  seen  the  land  across  the 
bay,  except  for  a  very  short  space. 

"At  three,  I  went  on  deck ;  it  completely  cleared  Ibi 
ten  minutes,  when  I  distinctly  saw  the  land  round  the 
bottom  of  the  bay,  forming  a  chain  of  mountflins  con- 
nected witii  those  which  extended  along  the  north  and 
south  side.  This  land  appeared  to  be  at  the  distance 
of  eight  leagues,  and  Mr.  Lewis,  the  master,  and  James 
Haig,  leading  man,  being  sent  for,  they  took  its  bear- 
ings, which  were  insertea  in  the  log.  At  this  raom^it 
I  also  saw  a  continuity  of  ice  at  the  distance  of  seven 
miles,  extending  from  one  side  of  the  bay  to  the  other, 
between  the  nearest  cape  to  the  north,  which  I  named 
after  Sir  George  Warrender,  and  that  to  the  south, 
which  was  named  after  Yiscount  Castlereagh.  The* 
mountains,  which  occupisd  the  center,  in  a  north  and 

8  B* 


f 


m 


PROOftKBS   OF   AKCIIO   DISCOVERY. 


«oiith  directiq|l^w^  named  Croker^s  Mountains,  after 
the  Seci'etary  to  the  Admiralty."* 

They  next  proceeded  to  Possession  Bay,  at  the  en- 
tran^^  of  the  Strait,  where  a  great  many  animals  were 
observed.  Deer,  fox,  eAiine,  bears,  and  hares,  were 
either  seen,  or  proved  to  be  in  abundance  by  their 
tracks,  and  the  SKeleton  of  a  whale  Was  found  stranded 
about  600  yards  beyond  hieb-water-mark.  binding,  as 
Eoss  supposed,  no  outlet  through  Lancaster  Strait,  the 
vessels  continued  their  progress  to  the  southward,  ex- 
ploring the  western  coast  of  Baffin's  Bay  to  Pond's 
Bay,  and  Booth's  Inlet,  discovering  the  trending  of  the 
land,  which  he  named  North  C&Uoway,  and  North 
Ayr  to  Cape  Adair,  and  Scott's  Bay. 

On  September  the  10th,  they  landed  on  an  island 
near  Cape  Eglington,  which  was  named  Agnes'  Monu- 
ment. A  flag^staff  and  a  bottle,  with  an  account  of 
their  proceedings  was  set  up.  The  remains  of  a  tem- 
porary habitation  of  some  ot  the  Esquimaux  were  here 
observed,  with  a  fire-place,  part  of  a  human  skull,  a 
broken  stone  vessel,  some  bones  of  a  seal,  burnt  wood, 
part  of  a  sledge,  and  tracks  of  dogs,  &c. 

While  t|»e  boat  was  absent,  two  large  bears 'swam  off 
to  the  ships,  which  were  at  the  distance  of  six  miles 
from  the  land.  They  reached  the  Alexander,  and  were 
immediately  attacked  by  the  boats  of  that  ship,  and 
killed.  One,  which  was  shot  through  the  head,  unfor- 
tunately sank ;  the  other,  on  being  wounded,  attacked 
the  boats,  and  showed  consideraUe  play,  but  was  at 
length  secured  and  towed  to  the  Isabella  by  the  boats 
of  both  ships.  The  animal  weighed  1131 J  lbs.,  besides 
the  blood  it  had  lost,  which  was  estimated  at  30  lbs 
more. 

On  the  following  day,  Lieut.  Parry  was  sent  on  shore 
to  examine  an  iceberg,  which  was  found  to  be  4l69 
yards  long,  3869  yards  broad,  and  61  feet  high,  being 
aground  in  61  fathoms.  When  they  had  ascended  to 
the  top,  which  was  perfectly  flat,  they  found  a  huge 

.  *  Vol  I,  p.  241  -46.  8v5.  ed. 


VOYAGE  OP  BUCIIAN   ANT)  FRANn^m. 


white  bear  in  quiot  possoesicn  of.  ^m^I|||^,  who,  mneh 
to  their  inortificatioy  and  astonishmlntTpliinMa  with- 
out iiesitation  into  the  eea  from  the  edge  of  tw  preci- 
pice, which  was  fifty. feet  hich.  « 

From  carefol  observation  ilf was  fonnd  ttiat  there  was 
no  HwAi  land  in  the  center  of  Davis'  Strait  as  James' 
iHlami,  which  was  laid  down  in  most  of  the  charts. 
Nothing  deserving  of  notice  occurred  in  the  subsequent 
course  of  the  vessels  past  Cape  Walsingham  to  Gum- 
berland  Strait. 

The  let  of  October  having  arrived,  the  limit  to  which 
his  instructions  permitted  him  to  remain  out,  Boss 
shaped  his  course  homeward,  and  after  enconnterine  a 
severe  gale  off  Cape  Farewell,  arrived  in  Grimsoy 
Roads  on  the  14th  of  November.  As  respects  the  pur- 
pose of  Arctic  discovery,  this  voyage  mav  Ibe  considered 
almost  a  blank,  none  of  the  important  inlets  and  sounds 
of  Baflm's  Bay  having  been  explored,  and  all  that  wa« 
done  was  to  define  more  clearly  the  land-bounds  of 
Davis'  Strait  and  Baffin's  Bay,  if  Wo  except  the  valu- 
able magnetic  and  other  obsei'vations  made  hy  Captain 
Sabine.  The  commander  of  the  expedition  was  pro- 
moted to  the  rank  of  captain  on  paying  off  the  ships  in 
December,  1818. 

The  account  of  his  voyage,  published  by  Capt.  Boss, 
is  of  the  most  meager,  and  uninteresting  description, 
and  more  than  half  filled  with  dry  details  of  the  outfit, 
copies  of  his  instructicms,  of  his  routine  letters  and 
orders  to  his  officers,  &c, 

BnoHAN  Amy  Fraitklin. 
Dorotheaand  Trent  to  Pole^  1818. 


ilfei 


In  conjunction  ^th  the  expedition  of  Captain  John 
Ross,  was  that  sent  out  to  the  coast  of  Spitzbergen,  and 
of  which  Captain  Beechy  has  published  a  most  inter- 
esting account,  embellished  with  some  very  elegant 
illustrations  from  his  pencil.  "The  charge  of  it  was 
given  to  Captain  D.  Buchan,  who  had,  a  lew  years  pre- 
vious^ v,  conducted  a  very  interesting  expedition  into 


46 


PBOGBESS  OF  AKCTIO  DISCOVERY. 


W 


the  Interior  oLJIiLE^wfoimclUncl.  The  first  and  most  im- 
portant obje(»OT  mis  expedition  was  the  discovery  of 
a  passage  over  or  as  near  the  Pole,  as  might  be  possible, 
and  through  Behring's  Straits  into  the  Pacific.  But  it 
was  also  hoped  that  it  ifiight  at  the  same  time  be  the 
means  of  improving  the  geography  and  hydrography 
of  the  Arctic  regions,  of  which  so  little  was  at  that  time 
known,  and  contribute  to  the  advancement  of  scieiace 
and  natural  knowledge.  The  objects  to  which  attention 
was  specially  pointed  in  the  Admiralty  instructions, 
were  me  variation  and  inclination  of  the  magnetic  nee- 
dle, the  intensity  of  the  magnetic  force,  and  how  far  it 
is  affected  bv  atmospherical  electricity ;  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  air,  the  dip  of  the  horizon,  refraction,  height 
of  the  tides,  set  and  velocity  of  the  currents,  depths 
and  soundings  of  the  sea.  Collections  of  specimens  to 
illustrate  the  animal,  mineral  and  vegetable  kingdoms, 
were  also  directed  to  be  made.  ^  ^ 

The  officers  and  crew  appointed  to  these  vessels  were* 

*  Dorothea,  382  tons. 

Captain  —  David  Buchan.      ^  ,     \, 

Lieutenant  —  A.  Morell. 

Surgeon  —  John  Duke. 

Assistant  Surgeon — W.  G.  Borland. 

Purser  —  John  Jermain. 

Astronomer-^  George  Fisher. 

Admiralty  Mates  —  C.  Palmer  and  W.  J.  Dealy. 

Greenland  Pilots  —  P.  Bruce,  master ;  G.  Crawftird> 

mate. 
46  petty  officers,  seamen,  &c. 
^  Total  complement,  65. 

Trent,  249  tons.g| 

riXieutenant  and  Commander — Joim  Franklin, 
'ii  lieutenant — Fred.  "W".  Beechy,  (artist.) 
~t  Purser — W.  Barrett. 
^  Assistant  Surgeon  —  A.  GilfiUan. 

Admiralty  Hates— A.  Eeid  and  George  Back. 

Greenland  Pilots  ^-  G,  Fife,  master  ;  G.  Kirby,  nw.l;€w 
ri  80  petty  officers  and  seamen. 

Total  complement,  38. 


VOYAGE  OF  BUCHAN  AND  FRANKLIN. 


47 


Having  been  properly  fitted  for  the  service,  and  ta- 
ken on  board  two  years'  provisions,  the  ships  sailed  on 
the  25th  of  April.  The  Trent  had  hardly  ffot  clear  of 
the  river  before  she  sprang  a  leak,  and  was  detained  in 
the  poi*!;  of  Lerwick  nearly  a  fortnight  undergoing 
repairs.  " 

On  the  18th  of  May,  the  ships  encountered  a  severe 
gale,  and  under  even  storm  stay-sails  were  buried  ffun- 
walo  deep  in  the  waves.  On  the  24th  they  sighted 
Cherie  Island,  situated  in  lat.  74^  33'  N.,  and  long.  17^ 
40'  E.,  formerly  so  noted  lor  its  fishery,  being  much 
frequented  by  walrusses,  and  for  many  years  the  Mus- 
covy Company  carried  on  a  lucrative  trade  by  sending 
ships  to  the  island  for  oil,  as  many  as  a  thousand  ani- 
mals being  often  captured  by  the  crew  of  a  single  ship 
in  the  course  of  six  or  seven  hours. 

The  progi'ess  of  the  discovery  ships  through  the  small 
floes  and  huge  masses  of  ice  which  floated  in  succes- 
sion past,  was  slow,  and  these,  from  their  novelty,  were 
regarded  with  peculiar  attention  from  the  grotesque 
shapes  they  assume.  Jhe  progress  of  a  vessel  through 
such  a  labyrinth  of  frozen  masses  is  one  of  the  most  in- 
teresting sights  that  offer  in  the  Arctic  seas,  and  kept 
the  officers  and  crew  out  of  their  beds  till  a  late  hour 
watching  the  scene.  Capt.  Beechey,  the  graphic  nar- 
rator of  the  voyage,  thus  describes  the  general  impres- 
sion created  : — "  There  was  besides,  on  this  occasion, 
an  additional  motive  for  remaining  up;  very  few  of 
us  ^d  ever  seen  the  sun  at  midnight,  and  this  night 
haj^iening  to  be  particularly  clear,  ms  broad  red  disc, . 
curiously  distorted  by  refraction,  and  sweeping  majes- 
tically along  the  northern  horizon,  was  an  object  of  im- 
posing grandeur,^j||^ch  riveted  to  the  deck  some  of  oui 
crew,  who  would  perhaps  have  beheld  with  indifference 
the  less  imposing  effect  of  the  icebergs;  or  it  might  have 
been  a  combination  of  both  these  phenomena ;  for  it 
cannot  be  denied  that  theT  novelty,  occasioned  by  the 
floating  masses,  was  materially  heightened  by  the  sin- 
gular effect  produced  by  the  very  low  altitude  at  which 
the  sun  cast  tis  fiery  beams  over  the  icy  surface  of  the 


48 


PROGRESS   OF   ARCTIU   DISCOVERY. 


sea.  The  rays  were  too  oblique  to  illuminate  more  thar 
the  inequalities  of  the  floes,  and  falling  thus  partially 
on  the  grotesque  shapes,  either  really  assumed  by  the 
ice^or  distorted  by  the  unequal  refraction  of  the  atmos- 
phere, so  betrayed  the  imagination  that  it  required  no 
great  exertion  of  fancy  to  trace  in  various  directions  ar- 
chitectural edifices,  grottos  and  caves  here  and  there 
glittering  as  if  with  precious  metals.  So  generally,  in- 
deed, was  the  deception  admitted,  that,  in  directing 
the  route  of  the  vessel  from  aloft,  we  for  awhile  deviated 
from  our  nautical  phraseology,  and  shaped  our  course 
for  a  church,  a  tower,  a  bridge,  or  some  similar  structure^ 
instead  of  for  lumps  of  ice,  which  were  usually  desig- 
nated by  less  elegant  appellations." 

The  increasing  difficulties  of  this  ice  navigation  soon, 
however,  directed  their  attention  from  romance  to  the 
reality  of  their  position,  the  perils  of  which  soon  be- 
came alarmingly  apjparent, 

"  The  streams  of  ice,  between  which  we  at  first  pur- 
sued our  serpentine  course  with  comparative  ease,  grad- 
ually became  more  narrow,  and  at'  length  so  impeded 
the  navigation,  that  it  became  necessary  to  run  the  ships 
against  some  of  these  imaginary  edifices,  in  order  to  turn 
them  aside.  Even  this  did  not  always  succeed,  as  some 
were  so  substantial  and  immoveable,  that  the  vessels 
glanced  off  to  the  opposite  bank  of  the  channel,  and 
then  became  for  a  time  embedded  in  the  ice.  Thus  cir- 
cumstanced, a  vessel  has  no  other  resource  than  that  of 
patiently  awaiting  the  change  of  position  in  the  ice,  of 
which  she  must  take  every  advantage,  or  she  will  Settle 
bodily  to  leeward,  and  become  completely  entangled." 

On  the  26th  the  ships  sighted  the  southern  promon- 
tory of  Spitzbergen,  and  on  the  Wt^^  while  plying  to 
windward  on  the  western  side,  ^fe  overtaken  by  a 
violent  gale  at  southwest,  in  which  they  parted  com- 
pany. ^The  weather  was  very  severe.  "The  snow  fell 
in  heavy  showers,  and  several  tons  weight  of  i€^  accu- 
mulated about  the  sides  of  the  brig,  (the  Trent,)  and  form 
ed  a  complete  casing  to  the  planks,  which  received  an 
additional  layer  at  each  plunge  c  T  the  vessel.  So  groat 


'<    •■ 


VOYA    E  OF  BDCHAN  AND  FBA2^KLIN. 


49 


^indeed,  was  the  accumtftation  about  the  bov^s,  that  we 
were  obliged  to  cut  it  away  repeatedly  with  axes  to  re- 
lieve the  bow-sprit  from  the  enormous  weight  that  was 
attached  to  it ;  and  the  ropes  were  so  thickly  covered 
with  ice,  that*  it  was  necessary  to  beat  them  with  largo 
sticks  to  keep  them  in  a  state  of  readiness  for  any  evo- 
lution that  might  be  rendered  necessarv,  either  by  the 
appearance  of  ice  to  leeward,  or  by  a  cnange  of  wind." 

On  the  gale  abating,  Lieutenant  Franklin  found  him- 
self surrounded  by  the  main  body  of  ice  in  lat.  80°  N., 
and  had  much  difficulty  in  extricating  the  vessel. — 
Had  this  formidable  body  been  encountered  in  thick 
weather,  while  scudding  before  a  gale  of  wind,  there 
would  have  been  very  little  chance  of  saving  either  the 
vessels  or  the  crews.  The  Trent  fortunately  fell  in  with 
her  consort,  the  Dorothea,  previous  to  entering  the  ap- 
pointed rendezvous  at  Magdalena  Bay,  on  the  3d  of 
June.  This  commodious  inlet  being  the  first  port  they 
had  anchored  at  in  the  polar  regions,  possessed  many 
objects  to  engage  atte/ition.  Wh#  particularly  struck 
them  was  the  brilliancy  of  the  atmosphere,  the  peace- 
ful novelty  of  the  scene,  and  the  grandeur  of  the  vari- 
ous objects  with  Vhich  nature  has  stored  these  unfre- 
quented regions.  The  anchorage  is  formed  by  rugged 
mountains,  which  rise  precipitously  to  the  height  of 
about  3000  feet.  Deep  valleys  and  glens  occur  between 
the  ranges,  the  greater  part  of  which  are  either  filled 
with  immense  beds  of  snow,  or  with  glaciers,  sloping 
from  the  summits  of  the  mountainous  margin  to  th« 
very  edge  of  the  sea. 

The  bay  is  rendered  conspicuous  by  four  huge  gla- 
ciers, of  which  the  most  remarkable,  though  the  small- 
est in  size,  is  situated  200  feet  above  the  sea,  on  the 
slope  of  a  mount^.  From  its  peculiar  appearance 
this  glacier  has  been  termed  the  Hanging  Iceberg. 

Its  position  is  such  that  it  seems  as  if  a  very  small 
matter  would  detach  it  from  the  mountain,  and  precip- 
itate it  into  the  sea.  And,  indeed,  large  portions  of  its 
front  do  occasionally  break  away  and  fall  with  hfead- 
long  impetuosity  upon  the  beach,  to  the  great  liazard 
4 


60 


JROGBESS   OF   ABCTIO   DISCOVERY. 


of  any  boat  that  may  cliance^to  be  near.  The  largesf 
of  these  glaciers  occupies  the  head  of  the  bay,  and, 
according  to  Captain  Beechey's  account,  extends  from 
two  to  three  miles  inland.  Numerous  large  rents  in  its 
upper  surface  have  caused  it  to  bear  a  resemblance  to 
the  ruts  left  by  a  wagon  ;  hence  it  was  named  by  the 
voyagers  the  "Wagon  Way."  The  frontage  of  this  gla- 
cier presents  a  perpendicular  surface  of  300  feet  in 
height,  by  7000  leet  in  length.    Mountain  masses — 

"  Whose  blocks  of  sapphire  seem  to  mortal  eye  '^ 

Hewn  from  cerulean  quames  in  the  skj,  ^ 
With  glacier  battlements  that- crowd  the  spheres^ 
The  slow  creation  of  six  thousand  ^ear% 
Amidst  immensity  they  tower  sublime, 
Winter's  eternal  palace,  built  by  Time." 

At  the  head  of  the  bay  there  is  a  high  pyramidal 
mountain  of  granite,  termed  Rotge  Hill,  from  the  m^- 
iads  of  small  birds  of  that  name  which  frequent  its 
base,  and  appear  to  prefer  its  environs  to  everv  other 
part  of  the  narbor.  "They  are  so  numerous  that  we 
have  frequently  seeg^an  uninterrupted  line  of  them  ex- 
tending full  half  way  over  the  bay,  or  to  a  distance  of 
more  than  three  miles,  and  so  close  together  that  thirty 
have  fj^en  at  one  shot.  This  living  c<flumn,  on  an  aver- 
age, might  have  been  about  six  yards  broad,  and  as 
many  deep  ;  so  that,  allowing  sixteen  birds  to  a  cubic 
yard,  there  must  have  been  nearly  four  millions  of  birds 
on  the  wing  at  one  time.  The  number  I  have  given  cer- 
tainly seems  large  ;  yet  when  it  is  told  that  the  little 
rotges  rise  in  such  numbers  as  completely  to  darken 
the  air,  and  that  their  chorus  is  distinctly  audibly  at  a 
distance  of  four  miles,  the  estimate  will  not  be  thought 
to  bear  any  reduction." 

One  of  their  earliest  excursionsy|^  this  bay  was  an 
attenipt  to  ascend  the  peak  of  Rotg^Hill,  "upon  which," 
says  Captain  Beechey,  "may  now,  perhaps,  be  seen  at 
the  height  of  about  2000  feet,  a  staff  that  once  carried 
a  red  nag,  which  was  planted  there  to  mark  the  great- 
est height  we  were  able  to  attain,  partly  in  consequence 
of  the  steepness  of  the  ascent,  but  mainly  on  accounl 
of  the  detached  masses  of  rock  wh^'ch  a  very  slight 


■^■- 


VOYAGE  OP  BUCHAN  AND  FRANKLIJi. 


51 


matter  would  displace  and  hurl  down  the  precipitous 
declivity,  to  the  utter  destruction  of  him  who  depended 
upon  their  support,  or  who  might  happen  to  be  in 
their  path  below.  The  latter  part  of  our  ascent  was, 
indeed,  much  against  our  inclination  ;  but  we  tbund  it 
impossible  to  descend  by  the  way  we  had  come  up,  and 
were  compelled  to  gain  a  ledge,  which  promised  the 
only  secure  resting-place  we  could  find  at  that  height. 
This  we  were  able  to  effect  by  sticking  the  tomahawks 
with  which  we  were  provided,  into  crevices  in  the  rock, 
as  a  support  for  our  feet ;  and  some  of  these  instru- 
ments we  were  obliged  to  leave  where  they  were  driven, 
in  consequence  ot  the  danger  that  attended  their 
recovery."  During  the  vessel's  detention  in  this  har- 
bor, the  bay  and  anchorage  were  completely  surveyed. 

When  the  first  party  rowed  into  this  bay,  it  was  in 
quiet  possession  of  herds  of  walruses,  who  were  so  un- 
accustomed to  the  sight  of  a  boat  that  they  assembled 
about  her,  apparently  highly  incensed  at  the  intrusion, 
and  swam  toward  her  as  though  tl||y  would  have  torn 
the  planks  asunder  with  their  tusks.  Their  hides-were 
so  tough  that  nothing  but  a  bayonet  would  pierce  them. 
The  wounds  that  were  inflicted  only  served  to  increase 
their  rage,  and  it  was  with  much  difficulty  they  were 
kept  off  with  fire-arms.  Subsequently  the  boats  went 
better  prepared  and  more  strongly  supported,  and 
many  of  these  monsters  were  killed ;  some  were  four- 
teen feet  in  length,  and  nine  feet  girth,  and  of  such 
prodigious  weight,  that  the  boat's  crew  could  scarcely 
turn  them. 

The  ships  had  not  been  many  days  at  their  anchor- 
age when  they  were  truly  astonished  at  the  sight  of  a 
strange  boat  puUingtoward  the  ships,  which  was  found 
to  belong  to  some.  Kussian  adventurers^  who  were  en- 
.c:aged  in  the  collection  of  peltry  and  morse'  teeth.  This 
is  the  last  remaining  establishment  at  Spitzbergen  still 
upheld  by  the  merchants  of  Archangel. 

Although  equally  surprised  at  the  sight  of  the  ves- 
sels, the  boat's  crew  took  courage,  and  after  a  careful 
scrutiny,  went  on  board  the  Dorothea;  Captain  Buchan 


52 


PKOQKESS   OF   ARCTIC   DISCOVERT 


gave  them  a  kind  reception,  and  supplied  them  with 
whatever  they  wanted ;  in  return  for  which  they  sent 
on  board,  the  following  day,  a  side  of  venison  in  excel- 
lent condition.  Wishing  to  gain  some  further  infomia- 
tion  of  these  people,  an  officer  accompanied  them  to 
their  dwelling  at  the  head  of  a  small  cove,  about  four 
miles  distant  trom  the  bay,  where  he  found  a  comfort- 
able wooden  hut,  well  lined  with  moss,  and  stored  with 
venison,  wild  ducks,  &c. 

It  is  related  by  Captain  Beechey  that  it  was  with  ex- 
treme pleasure  they  noticed  in  this  retired  spot,  proba- 
bly the  most  northern  and  most  desolate  habitation  of 
our  globe,  a  spirit  of  gratitude  and  devotion  to  the  A1-. 
mighty  rarely  exercised  in  civilized  countries.  "On 
landing  from  the  boat  and  approaching  their  residence, 
these  people  knelt  upon  its  tlireshold,  p,nd  offered  up  a 
prayer  with  fervor  and  evident  sincerity.  The  exact 
natm'e  of  the  prayer  we  did  not  learn,  but  it  was  no 
doubt  one  of  thanksgiving,  and  we  concluded  it  was  a 
custom  which  thesA^recluses  were  in  the  habit  of  observ- 
iiiff^n  their  safe  rmira  to  their  habitation.  It  may,  at 
all  events,  be  regarded  as  an  instance  of  the  beneficial 
effects  which  seclusion  from  the  busy  world,  and  a  con- 
templation of  the  works  of  nature,  almost  invariably 
produce  upon  the  hearts  of  even  the  most  uneducated 
part  of  mankind'.'' 

On  the  7th  of  June  the  expedition  left  the  anchorage 
to  renew  the  examination  of  the  ice,  and  after  steering 
a  few  leagues  to  the  northward,  found  it  precisely  in 
the  same  state  as  it  had  been  left  on  the  2a.  In  spite 
of  all  their  endeavors,  by  towing  and  otherwise,  the 
vessels  were  driven  in  a  calm  by  the  heavy  swell  into 
the  packed  ice,  and  the  increasing  peril  ot  their  situa- 
tion may  be  imagined  from  the  following  graphic  de- 
Bc^iption :  — 

"  The  pieces  at  the  edge  of  thepack  were  at  one  time 
wholly  immersed  in  the  sea,  and  at  the  next  raised  far 
above  their  natural  line  of  flotation^  while  those  farther 
ill,  being  more  extensive^,  were  alternately  depressed  or 


YOYAGB   OF  BUOHAN   AND  W&AXnSLlN. 


m 


elevated  at  either  extremity  as  the  advancing  wave 
forced  its  way  along. 

"The  see-saw  motion  which  waff  thus  produced  was 
alarming,  not  merely  in  appearance,  but  in  fact,  and 
must  have  proved  fatal  to  any  vessel  that  had  encoun- 
tered it ;  as  floes  of  ice,  several  yards  in  thickness,  were 
continually  crashing  and  breaking  in  pieces,  and  the 
sea  for  miles  was  covered  with  fragments  ground  so 
small  that  they  actually  formed  a  thick,  past^  sub- 
stance—  in  nautical  language  termed,  ''hrash  ice'  — 
which  extended  to  the  depth  of  five  feet.    Amidst  this 
giddy  element,  our  whole  attention  was  occupied  in  en- 
deavoring to  place  the  bow  of  the  vessel,  the  strongest 
part  of  her  fram«),  in  the  direction  of  the  most  formida- 
ble pieces  of  ice  — a  maneuver  which,  though  likely  to 
be  attended  with  the  loss  of  the  bowsprit,  was  yet  prefer- 
able to  encountering  the  still  greater  risk  of  having  the 
broadside  of  the  vessel  in  contact  with  it ;  for  this  would 
have  subjected  her  to  the  chance  of  dipping  her  gun- 
wale under  the  floes  as  she  rolled#an  accident  which, 
had  it  occurred,  would  either  have  laid  open  hex'  side, 
or  have  overriet  the  vessel  at  once.    In  either  case,  the 
event  would  probably  have  proved  fatal  to  all  on  board, 
as  it  would  have  been  next  to  impossible  to  rescue  any 
person  from  the  confused  moving  mass  of  brash  ice 
which  covered  the  sea  in  every  direction." 

The  attention  of  the  seamen  was  in  some  degree  di- 
verted from  the  contemplation  of  this  scene  of  diffi- 
culty by  the  necessity  of  employing  all  hands  at  the 
pump,  the  leak  having  gained  upon  them.  But,  for- 
tunately, toward  morning,  they  got  quite  clear  of  the 
ice. 

Steering  to  the  westward  to  reconnoiter,  they  fell  in, 
m  longitude  4°  30'  E.,<  with  several  whale  ships,  and 
were  informed  by  them  that  the  ice  was  quite  compact 
to  the  westward,  and  that  fifteen  vessels  were  beset  in 
it.  Proceeding  to  the  northward,  the  ships  passed,  on 
the  11th  of  June,  Cloven  Cliff,  a  remarkable  isolated 
rock,  which  marks  the  northwestern  boundary  of  Spitz- 
bergen,  and  steered  along  an  intricate  channel  between 


m 


PB0GBE8S  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVEEr. 


the  land  and  ice  ;  but,  next  morning,  their  further  ad- 
vance was  stopped,  and  the  channel  by  which  the  ves- 
sels had  entered  became  so  completely  closed  up  as  to 
preclude  the  possibility  also  of  retreating.  Lieutenant 
Beechey  proceeds  to  state  — 

"  The  ice  soon  began  to  press  heavily  upon  us,  and, 
to  add  to  our  difficulties,  we  found  the  water  so^hallow 
that  the  rocks  were  plainly  discovered  under  the  bot- 
toms of  the  ships.  It  was  impossible,  however,  by  any 
exertion  on  our  part,  to  improve  the  situations  of  the 
vessels.  They  were  as  firmly  fixed  in  the  ice  as  if  they 
bad  formed  part  of  the  pack,  and  we  could  only  hope 
that  the  current  would  not  drift  them  into  still  shallower 
water,  and  damage  them  against  the  ground^" 

The  ships  were  here  hemmed  in  in  almost  the  same 
position  where  Baffin,  Hudson,  Poole,  Captain  Phipps, 
and*  all  the  early  voyagers  to  this  quarter  had  been 
stopped. 

As  the  tide  turned,  the  pieces  of  ice  immediately 
around  the  ships  b^^gan  to  separate,  and  some  of  them 
to  twist  round  with  a  loud  grinding  noise,  urging  the 
vessels,  which  were  less  than  a  mile  from  the  land,  still 
nearer  and  nearer  to  the  beach. 

By  great  exertions  the  ships  were  hauled  into  small 
bays  in  the  floe,  and  secured  there  by  ropes  fixed  to  the 
ice  by  means  of  large  iron  hooks,  called  ice  anchors. 
Shifting  the  ships  from  one  part  of  this  floe  to  the  other, 
they  remained  attached  to  the  ice  thirteen  days.  As 
this  change  of  positicm  could  only  be  effected  by  main 
force,  the  crew  were  so  constantly  engaged  in  this  har- 
assing duty,  that  their  time  was  divided  almost  entirely 
between  the  windlass  and  the  pump,  until  the  men  at 
length  became  so  fatigued  that  the  sick-list  was  seriously 
augmented.  During  this  period,  however,  the  situation 
of  the  leak  was  fortunately  discovered,  and  the  damage 
repaired. 

An  officer  and  a  party  of  men  who  left  the  Dorothea 
to  pay  a  visit  to  the  shore,  about  three  or  four  milee 
distant,  lost  themselves  in  tlie  fog  and  snow,  and  wan- 
dered about  for  sixteen  hours,  until,  quite  overcome 


TOYAOE   OF   BUOHAIf   AND   FRANKUN. 


5ft 


with  wet,  cold  and  fati^e,  they  sat  down  in  a  state  of 
despondency,  upon  a  piece  of  ice,  determined  to  submit 
their  fate  to  Providence.    Their  troubles  are  thus  told  : 

"To  travel  over  ragged  pieces  of  ice,  upon  which 
there  were  two  feet  o^  •:'now,  and  often  more,  sprincrin^ 
from  one  slippery  piece  to  the  other,  or,  when  the  chan- 
nels between  them  were  too  wide  for  this  purpose,  fer- 
rying themselves  upon  detached  fra^ents,  was  a  work 
whicii  it  required  no  ordinary  exertion  to  execute. 

"Some  fell  into  the  water,  and  were  with  difficulty 
preserved  from  drowning  by  their  companions ;  while 
others,  afraid  to  make  any  hazardous  attempt  whatever, 
were  left  upon  pieces  of  ice,  and  drifted  about  at  the 
mercy  of  the  winds  and  tides.  Foreseeing  the  proba- 
bility of  a  separation,  they  took  the  first  opportunity 
of  dividing,  in  equal  shares,  the  small  quantity  of  pro- 
vision which  they  had  remaining,  as  also  their  stocK  of 
powder  and  ammunition.  They  also  took  it  in  turns  to 
lire  muskets,  in  the  hope  of  being  heard  from  the  ships." 

The  reports  of  the  nre-arms  were  heard  by  their  ship- 
mates, and  Messrs.  Fife  and  Kirby,  the  Greenland  ice- 
masters,  ventured  out  with  poles  and  lines  to  their 
assistance,  and'  had  the  good  K>rtune  to  fall  in  with  the 

Earty,  and  bring  them  safely  on  board,  after  eighteen 
ours'  absence.  They  determined  in  future  to  rest  sat- 
isfied with  the  view  of  the  shore  which  was  afforded 
them  from  the  ship,  having  not  the  slightest  desire  to 
attempt  to  approach  it  again  bj  means  of  the  ice. 

The  pressure  of  the  ice  agamst  the  vessels  now  be- 
came very  ffreat. 

"At  one  time,  when  the  Trent  appeared  to  be  so  closely 
wedged  up  that  it  did  not  seem  possible  for  her  to  be 
moved,  she  was  suddenly  lifted  four  feet  by  an  enor- 
mous mass  of  ice  getting  under  her  keel ;  at  another, 
the  fragments  of  the  crumbling  floe  were  piled  up 
under  the  bows,  to  the  great  danger  of  the  bowsprit. 

"The  Dorothea  was  in  no  less  imminent  danger,  es- 
pecially from  the  point  of  a  floe,  which  came  in  contact 
with  her  side,  where  it  remained  a  short  time,  and  then 
glanced  off,  and  became  checked  by  the  field  to  which 


f' 


66 


PBOOBE88   OF   AROTIO  DISCOVERT. 


she  was  moored.  The  enonnous  pressure  to  which  tho 
ship  had  been  subjected  was  now  apparent  by  the  field 
being  rent,  and  its  point  broken  into  fragments,  which 
were  speedily  heaped  up  in  a  pyramid,  thirty-five  feet 
in  height,  upon  tne  very  summit  of  which  there  ap- 
pearea  a  huge  mass,  bearing  the  impression  of  the 
planks  and  bolts  of  the  vessers  bottom.'' 

Availing  themselves  of  a  break  in  the  ice,  the  ships 
were  moved  to  an  anchorage  between  the  islands  con- 
tiguous to  the  Cloven  Cliif ;  and  on  the  28th  of  June, 
anchored  in  fifteen  fathoms  water,  near  Vogel  Sang. 
On  the  islands  they  found  plenty  of  game,  and  eider- 
ducks. 

The  island  of  Yogel  Sang  alone  supplied  the  crews 
with  forty  reindeer,  which  were  in  such  high  condition 
that  the  tat  upon  the  loins  of  some  measured  from  four 
to  six  inches,  and  a  carcass,  ready  for  being  dressed,) 
weighed  285  pounds.  Later  in  the  season,  the  deer 
were,  however,  so  lean  that  it  was  rare  to  m  3et  with  any 
fat  upon  them  at  all. 

On  the  6th  of  July,  finding  the  ic«  had  been  driven 
to  the  northward,  the  ships  again  put  to  sea,  and  Oapt. 
Buchan  determined  to  prove,  by  a  de&perate  effortj 
what  advance  it  was  possible  to  make  by  dragging  the 
vessels  through  the  ice  whenever  the  smallest  opening 
occurred.  This  laborious  experiment  was  pertormea 
by  fixing  large  ropes  to  iron  hooks  driven  into  the  ice, 
and  by  heaving  upon  them  with  the  windlass,  a  party 
removing  obstructions  in  the  channel  with  saws.  But 
in  spite  of  all  their  exertions,  the  most  northerly  posi- 
tion attained  was  80°  37'  N.  Although  fastened  to  tho 
ice,  the  ships  were  now  drifted  bodily  to  the  southward 
by  the  prevailing  current.  They  were  also  much  in- 
jured by  the  pressure  of  hummocks  and  fields  of  ice. 

On  the  10th  of  July,  Captain  Beechey  tells  us,  the 
Trent  sustained  a  squeeze  which  made  her  rise  four 
feet,  and  heel  Over  five  streaks  ;  and  on  the  16th  and 
16th,  both  vessels  suffered  considerable  damage.  "  On 
that  occasion,"  he  says,  "we  observed  a  field  fifteen 
feet  in  thickness  break  up,  and  the  pieces  pile  upon 


M 


VOYAGE  OF  UUOflAN  AND  FRANKLIN. 


61 


each  other  to  a  great  height,  until  tney  upset,  when  they 
rolled  over  with  a  tremendous  craeh.  The  ice  near  the 
fihips  was  piled  up  above  their  bulwarks.  Fortunately, 
the  vessels  rose  to  the  pressure,  or  they  must  have  had 
their  sides  forced  in.  The  Trent  received  her  greatest 
damage  upon  the  quarters,  and  was  so  twisted  that  the 
doors  of  all  the  cabins  flew  open,  and  the  panels  ot 
some  started  in  the  frames,  while  her  false  stem-post 
was  moved  three  inches,  and  her  timbers  cracked  to  a 
most  serious  extent.  The  Dorothea  suffered  still  more : 
some  of  her  beams  were  sprung,  and  two  planks  on  the 
lower  deck  were  split  fore  and  aft,  and  doubled  up,  and 
she  otherwise  sustained  serious  injury  in  her  hull.  It 
was  in  vain  that  we  attempted  any  relief ;  our  puny 
efforts  were  not  even  felt,  thouffh  continued  for  eight 
hours  with  unabated  zeal  ;*and  it  was  not  until  the  tide 
changed  that  the  smallest  effect  was  produced.  When, 
however,  that  occurred,  the  vessels  nghted  and  settled 
in  the  water  to  their  proper  draught.'" 

From  the  12th  to  the  19th,  they  were  closely  beset 
with  ice.  For  nine  successive  days  following  this  the 
crev  8  were  occupied,  night  and  day,  in  endeavoring  to 
extricate  the  ships,  and  regain  the  open  sea.  Thinking 
he  had  given  the  ice  a  fair  trial  here,  the  commander 
determined  upon  examining  its  condition  toward  the 
eastern  coast  of  Greenland,  and  in  the  event  of  finding 
it  equally  impenetrable  there,  to  proceed  round  the 
south  cape  of  Spitzbergen,  and  make  an  attempt  be- 
tween that  island  and  Noyb,  Zembla. 

On  the  30th  of  July,  a  sudden  gale  came  on,  and 
brought  down  the  main  body  of  the  ice  upon  them,  so 
that  the  ships  were  in  such  imminent  danger  that  their 
only  means  of  safety  was  to  take  reftige  among  it  —  a 
practice  which  has  been  resorted  to  by  whalers  in  ex- 
treme cases  —  as  their  only  chance  of  escaping  destruc- 
tion. 

The  following  is  a  description  of  the  preparation 
made  to^ithstand  the  terrible  encounter,  and  the  hair- 
breadth escape  from  the  dangers :  — 

"  In  order  to  avert  the  affo<?tii  of  this  as  much  as  pos* 


58 


rnoouEss  of  abcfio  discovkky. 


>-^.- 


Bible,  a  cable  was  cut  up  into  thirty-feet  leiisths,  and 
these,  with  plates  of  iron  four  feet  square,  which  had 
been  supplied  to  us  as  fenders,  together  with  some 
walrus'  nides,  were  hung  round  the  vessels,  especially 
about  the  bows.  The  masts,  at  the  same  time,  were  se- 
cured with  additional  ropes,  and  the  hatches  were  bat- 
tened and  nailed  down.  By  the  time  these  precautions 
had  been  taken,  our  approach  to  the  breakers  only  left 
us  the  alternative  of  either  permitting  the  ships  to  bo 
drifted  broadside  against  the  ice,  and  so  to  take  th^r 
chance,  or  of  endeavoring  to  force  fairly  into  it  by  put- 
ting before  the  wind.  At  length,  the  hopeless  state  of 
a  vessel  placed  broadside  against  so  formidable  a  body 
.became  apparent  to  all,  and  we  resolved  to  attempt 
the  latter  expedient." 

^Eagerly,  but  in  vain,  was  the  general  line  of  the  pack 
scanned,  to  find  one  place  more  open  thatf  the  other. 
All  parts  appeared  to  be  equally  impenetrable,  and  to 
present  one  unbroken  line  of  furious  oreakers,  in  which 
immense  pieces  of  ice  were  heaving  and  subsiding  with 
the  waves,  and  dashing  together  with  a  violence  which 
nothing  apparently  but  a  solid  body  could  withstand, 
occasioning  such  a  noise  that  it  was  with  the  greatest 
difficulty  the  officers  could  make  their  orders  heard  by 
the  crew. 

The  fear^l  aspect  of  this  appalling  scene  is  thus 
sketched  by  Captain  Beeche^' : — 

"  No  language,  I  am  convinced,  can  convey  an  ade- 
quate idea  of  the  terrific  grandeur  of  the  effect  now  pro- 
duced by  the  collision  of  the  ice  and  the  tempestuous 
ocean.  The  sea,  violently  agitated  and  rolling  its  moun- 
tainous waves  against  an  opposing  body,  is  at  all  times 
a  sublime  and  awful  sight ;  but  when,  in  addition,  it 
encounters  immense  masses,  which  it  has  set  in  motion 
with  a  violence  equal  to  its  own,  its  effect  is  prodigi- 
ously increased.  At  oife  moment  it  bursts  upon  these 
icy  fragments  and  burie$  them  many  feet  beneath  its 
wave,  and  the  next,  as  the  buoyancy  of  .the  <i^|pressed 
body  struggles  for  reascendancy,  the  water  rushes  in 
foaming  cataracts  over  its  edges  ;  while  every  indi* 


-  «. 


VOYAGE   OF   DUCHANAND   FWANKLIN. 


50 


vidnal  maes,  rocking  and  lahoring  in  its  bed,  grinds 
a;?ainBt  and  contenaB  with  its  opponent,  until  one  is 
efther  split  with  the  shock  or  upheaved  upon  the  aur- 
face  of  the  other.  Nor  is  this  collision  conlincd  to  any 
particular  spot ;  it  is  going  qu  as  far  as  the  sight  can 
reach ;  and  when  from  thid  convulsive  scene  below,  the 
eye  is  turned  to  the  extraoi*dinary  appearance  of  the 
blink  in  the  sky  above,  where  Uie  unnatural  clear- 
ness of  a  calm  and  silvery  atmosphere  presents  itself, 
bounded  by  a  dark,  hard  lino  of  stormy  clouds,  such  as 
at  this  moment  lowered  over  our  masts,  as  if  to  mark 
the  confines  within  which  the  efforts  of  man  would  be 
of  no  avail.  The  reader  may  imagine  the  sensation  of 
awe  which  must  accompany  that  of  grandeur  in  the 
mind  of  the  beholder." 

"If  ever,"  continues  the  narrator,  "the  fortitude  of 
seamen  was  fa'irly  tried,  it  was  assuredly  not  less  so  on 
this  occasion  ;  and  I  will  not  conceal  the  pride  I  felt  in 
witnessing  the  bold  and  decisive  tone  m  which  the 
orders  were  issued  by  the  commander  (the  present 
Captain  Sir  John  Franklin)  of  our  little  vessel,  and  the 
promptitude  and  steadiness  with  which  they  were  exe- 
cuted by  the  crew." 

As  the  laboring  vessel  flew  before  the  gale,  she  soon 
neared  the  scene  of  danger. 

"Each  person  instinctively  secured  his  own  hold, 
and  with  nis  eyes  fixed  upon  the  masts,  awaited  in 
breathless  anxiety  the  moment  of  concussion. 

"  It  soon  arrived, — the  brig,  (Trent)  cutting  her  way 
through  the  light  ice,  came  in  violent  contact  with  the 
main  Dody.  £  an  instant  we  all  lost  our  footing  ;  the 
masts  bent  with  the  impetus,  and  the  cracking  timbers 
ii'om  below  bespoke  a  pressure  which  was  calculated  to 
awaken  our  serious  apprehensions.  The  vessel  stag- 
gered under  the  shock,  and  for  a  moment  seemed  to 
recoil ;  but  tho  next  wave,  curling  up  under  her  coun- 
ter, drove  her  about  her  own  length  within  the  margin 
of  the  ice,  where  she  gave  one  roll,  and  was  immedi- 
ately thrown  broadside  to  the  win!  by  the  succeeding 
wave,  which  beat  furious^lv  aoain&t  her  6t<n*n,  ana 
4  ^      '^  C 


i^ 


*v 


IPI     '  PBOGKESS  OF  ^KOTIO   DiSCOVEKY. 

brouglit  her  lee-side  in  contact  with  the  main  body, 
leaving  her  weather-side  exposed  at  the  same  time  to 
a  piece  of  ice  about  twice  her  oWn  dimensions.  This 
unfortunate  occurrence  prevented  the  vessel  penetrat- 
ing sufficiently  far  into  the  ice  to  escape  the  effect  of 
the.  gale,  and  placed  her  In  a  situation  where  she  was 
assaued  on  all  sides  by  battering-rams,  if  I  may  use 
the  expression,  every  one  of  which  contested  the  small 
space  which  she  occupied,  and  dealt  such  unrelenting 
blows,  that  there  appeared  to  be  scarcely  any  possibil- 
ity of  saving  her  from  foundering.  Literally  tossed 
from  piece  to  piece,  we  had  nothing  left  but  patiently 
to  abide  the  issue  ;  for  we  could  scarcely  keep  our  feet, 
much  less  render  any  assistance  to  the  vessel.  The  mo- 
tion, indeed,  was  so  great,  that  the  ship's  bell,  which,  in 
the  heaviest  gale  ol  wind,  had  never  struck  of  itself, 
now  tolled  so  continually,  that  it  was  ordered  to  b© 
muffled,  for  the  purpose  of  escaping  the  unpleasant  as 
sociation  it  was  calculated  to  produce. 

"  In  anticipation  of  the  worst,  we  determined  to  at 
tempt  placing  the  launch  upon  the  ice  under  the.  lee, 
and  nurried  into  her  such  provisions  and  stores  as  could 
at  the  moment  be  got  at.  Serious  doubts  were  reason- 
ably entertained  of  the  boat  being  able  to  live  among 
the  confused  mass  by  which  we  were  encompassed;  yet 
as  this  appeared  to  be  our  only  refiige,  we  clung  to  it 
with  all  the  eagerness  of  a  last  resource." 

From  the  injury  the  vessel  repeatedly  received,  it 
became  very  evident  that  if  subjected  to  this  concus- 
sion for  any  time,  she  could  not  hold  together  long ;  the 
only  chance  of  escape,  therefore,  appeared  to  depend 
upon  getting  before  the  wind,  and  penetrating  fm*ther 
into  the  ice. 

To  effect  this  with  any  probability  of  success,  it  be- 
came necessary  to  set  more  head-sa^j'^ough  at  the 
risk  of  the  masts,  already  tottering  with  the  pressure 
of  that  which  was  spread.  By  the  expertness  of  the 
seamen,  more  sail  was  spread,  and  under  this  additional 
pressure  of  canvasgi  the  ship  came  into  the  desired 
position,  and  with  the  aid  of  an  enormous  mass  under 


VOYAGiJ   01    j4LCirA:!J    AJfD  l'.2AJS'5LIN. 


61 


the  stern,  she  split  a  small  field  of  ice,  fourteen  feet  in 
thickness,  which  had  hitherto  impeded  her  pi-ocress, 
and  effected  a  passage  for  herself  between  the  pieces. 
la.  this  improved  position,  by  carefully  placing  the 
protecting  fenders  between  the  ice  and  the  ship's  sides, 
the  strokes  were  much  diminished,  and  she  managed 
to  weather  out  the  gale,  but  lost  sight  of  her  consort  in 
the  clouds  of  spray  which  were  tossed  about,  and  the 
huge  intervening  masses  of  ice  among  which  liiey  were 
embayed.  On  the  gale  moderating,  the  ships  were  for- 
tunately got  once  more  into  an  open  sea,  although  both 
disabled,  and  one  at  least,  the  Dorothea,  which  had 
sustained  the  heavy  shocks,  in  a  foundering  condition. 
For  the  main  object  of  the  expedition  they  were  now 
useless,  and,  both  being  in  a  leaky  state,  they  bore  up 
for  Fair  Haven,  in  Spitzbergen.  In  approaching  the 
anchorage  in  South  Gat,  the  Trent  bounded  over  a 
sunken  rock,  and  struck  hard,  but  this,  after  their  re- 
cent danger,  was  thought  comparatively  light  of. 

On  examining  the  hulls  of  the  vessels,  it  was  found 
they  had  sustained  fi'ightful  injuries.  The  intermediate 
lining  of  felt  between  the  timbers  and  planks  seems  to 
have  aided  greatly  in  enabling  the  vessels  to  sustain 
the  repeated  powerful  shocks  they  had  encountered. 
Upon  consulting  with  his  officers.  Captain  Buchan  came 
to  the  opinion  that  the  most  prudent  course,  was  to 
patch  up  the  vessels  for  their  return  voyage.  Lieuten- 
ant Franklin  preferred  an  urgent  request  that  he  might 
be  allowed  to  proceed  in  his  own  vessel  upon  the  inter- 
esting service  still  unexecuted ;  but  this  could  not  be 
com^ied  with,  in  consequence  of  the  hazard  to  the 
crew  of  proceeding  home  singly  in  a  vessel  so  shat- 
tered and  unsafe  as  the  Dorothea.    After  refitting,  they 

ut  to  sea  at  the  end  of  August,  and  reached  England 

y  the  middle  of  October. 

;  Fraitklin's  First  Laot)  Expedition,  1819-21. 


I 


In  1819,  on  the  recommendation  of  the  Lords  of  tho 
Admiralty,  Capt.  Franklin^was  appointed  to  command 


m 


62 


'^  »»lw:)01tKSS  OF  Alien  c  discoveet. 


an  overland  expedition  from  Hudson's  Bay  to  the  north- 
em  shores  of  America,  for  th^  purpose  of  detennining 
the  latitudes  and  longitudes,  and  exploring  the  coast  of 
the  continent  eastward  from  the  Coppermine  River.  Dr. 
John  Richardson,  R.  N.,  and  two  Admiralty  Midship- 
men, Mr.  GeorffO  Back,  (who  had  been  out  on  the  i)o]ar 
expedition,  in  the  previous  year,  in  H.  M.  S.  Trent,)  and 
Mr.  Robert  Hood,  were  placed  under  his  orders.  Pre- 
vious to  his  departure  from  London,  Capt.  Franklin  ob- 
tained all  the  information  and  advice  possible  from  Sir 
Alex.  Mackenzie,  one  of  the  only  two  persons  who  had 
yet  explored  those  shores.  On  the  23d  of  May,  the  party 
embaAed  at  Gravesend,  in  the  Prince  of  "Wales,  belong- 
ing to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which  immediately 
got  under  weigh  in  company  with  her  consorts,  the  Ed- 
dystone  and  Wear.  Mr.  Back,  who  was  left  on  shore  by 
accident  in  Yarmouth,  succeeded  in  catching  the  ship  at 
Stromness.  On  the  4th  of  August,  in  lat.  69°  68'  N^., 
and  long.  59*^  53'  W.,  they  first  fell  in  with  large  icebergs. 
On  the  following  day,  the  height  of  one  was  ascertained 
to  be  149  feet.  After  a  stormy  and  perilous  voyage  they 
reached  the  anchorage  at  i  ork  Flats  on  the  30th  of 
August. 

On  the  9th  of  September,  Capt.  Franklin  and  his  party 
left  York  Factory  m  a  boat  by  the  way  of  thft  rivers  and 
lakes  for  Cumberland  House,  another  of  the  Company's 
posts,  which  they  reached  on  the  22d  of  October. 

On  the  19th  of  January,  Franklin  set  out  in  company 
with  Mr.  Back  and  a  seaman  named  Hepburn,  with  pro- 
visions for  fifteen  days,  stowed  in  two  sledges,  on  their, 
journey  to  Fort  Chipewyan.  Dr.  Richardson,  Mr.  Hood 
and  Mr.  Conolly  accompanied  them  a  short  distance. 
After  touching  at  different  posts  of  the  Company,  they 
reached  their  destination  safely  on  the  26th  of  March, 
after  a  winter's  journey  of  857  miles.  The  gftatest  diffi- 
culty experienced  by  the  travelers  was  the  labor  of  walk- 
ing m  snow  shoes,  a  weight  of  between  two  and  three 
pounds  being  constantly  attached  to  galled  feet  and. 
swelled  ankles.  '-'-^ 

On  the  13th  of  July,  they  were  joined  by  Dr.  Richard- 


J 


m 


n 


FKANKLIN*S  FIRST  IV^.ND  EXPEDITION. 


01 


e  n6ii;h- 
rmining 
coast  of 
er.  Dr. 
lidsliip- 
be  polar 
)nt,)  and 
s.    Pre- 
iklin  ob- 
from  Sir 
«vho  had 
lie  party 
,  belong- 
lediately 
,  the  Ed- 
shore  by 
le  ship  at 
°  58'  N., 
icebergs. 
3ertained 
^age  they 
30th  of 


son  and  Mr.  Hood,  who  had  made  a  very  expeditious 
journey  from  Cumberland  House ;  they  had  only  one 
day's  provisions  left,  the  pemmican  they  had  received  at 
the  posts  being  so  mouldy  that  they  were  obliged  to  leave 
it  behind .  Arrangements  were  now  made  for  their  jour- 
ney northward,  bixteen  Canadian  voyageurs  were  en- 
gaged, and  a  Chipewyan  woman  and  two  interpreterb 
>v€re  to  betaken  on  from  Great  ^ave  Lake.  The  whole 
stock  of  provisions  they  could  obtain  before  starting  was 
only  su&cient  for  one  day's  supply,  exclusive  of  two  bar- 
rels of  %ur,  three  cases  of  preserved  meats,  some  choco- 
late, arrow-root  and  portable  soup,  which  had  been 
brought  fi'om  England,  and  were  kejpt  as  a  reserve  for  the 
journey  to  the -coast  in  the  following  season;  seventy 
pounds  of  dfer's  flesh  and  a  little  bafley  were  all  that 
the  Company's  officers  could  give  them.  The  provisions 
were  distributed  among  three  canoes,  and  the  party  set 
off  in  good  spirits  on  the  18^h  of  July.  They  had  to 
make  an  inroad  very  soon  on  their  preserved  meats,  for 
tl  ev  were  very  unfortunate  in  their  fishing.  On  the 
*?  ;th  of  July,  however,  they  were  successftd  m  shooting 
a  buffalo  in  the  Salt  River,  after  giving  him  fourteen 
balls.  At  Moose  Deer  Island  they  got  supplies  from 
the  Hudson's  Bay  and  North  West  Companies'  officers, 
and  on  th^Tth  set  out  again  on  their  journey,  reaching 
Fort  Providence  by  the  29th. 

Shortly  after  they  had  an  interview  with  a  celebrated 
and  influential  Indian  chief,  named  Akaitcho,  who  was 
to  frimish  them  with  guides.  Another  Canadian*roya- 
geur  was  there  engaged,  and  the  party  now  consisted  of 
the  officers  already  named,  Mr.  Fred.  "Wentzel,  clerk  of 
the  N.  W.  Fur  Company,  who  joined  them  here,  John 
Hepburn,  the  Englisn  seaman,  seventeen  Canadian  voy- 
ageurs, (one  of  wnom,  named  Michel,  was  an  Iroquois,) 
and  thi'ee  Indian  interpreters,  besides  the  wives  of  three 
of  the  voyageurs  who  had  been  brought  on  for  the  pur- 
poseof  making  clothes  and  shoes  for  the  men  at  the 
wi^iw  establishment.  The  whole  number  were  twenty- 
nine,  exclusive  of  three  children.  I  give  the  list  of  thoee 
whose  names  occur  most  fi^uently  irt  the  narrative; 


64 


PROGRESS  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERT. 


J.  B.  Belanger,  Peltier,  Solomon  Belariger,  Samahdte, 
Benoit,  Perrault,  Antonio  Fontano,  Beauparlant,  Yail- 
lant,  Credit,  Adam  St.  Gennain,  interweter;  Augustus 
and  J^unius,  Esquimaux  interpreters.  They  had  provis- 
ions for  ten  days'  consumption,  besides  a  little  chocolate 
and  tea,  viz  :  two  casks  of  flour,  200  dried  reindeer 
tongues,  some  dried  moose  meat,  portable  soup,  and  a 
little  arrow-root.  A  small  extra  canoe  was  provided  for 
the  women,  and  the  journey  for  the  Coppermine  River 
was  commenced  on  the  2d  of  August.  The  party  met 
with  many  hardships — were  placed  on  short  Me\ — and 
some  of  the  Canadians  broke  out  into  open  rebellion, 
refusing  to  proceed  farther.  However,  they  were  at  last 
calmed,  and  arrived  on  the  20th  of  August  at  Fort  En- 
terprise, on  Wiifter  Lake,  which,  by  the  advice  of  their 
Indian  guides,  they  determined  on  making  their  winter 
quarters.  The  total  length  of  the  voyage  from  Chipc- 
wyanwas552  miles;  and^fter  leaving  Fort  Providence, 
they  had  21  miles  of  portage  to  pass  over.  As  the  men 
had  to  traverse  each  portage  with  a  load  of  180  lbs., 
and  return  three  times  light,  they  walked,  in  the  whole, 
upward  of  150  miles.  *     ' 

In  consequence  of  the  refusal  of  Akaitcho  and  his 
party  of  Indians  to  guide  and  accompany ^em  to  the 
sea,  Decause,  as  they  alledged,  of  the  appiftch  of  win- 
ter, and  the  imminent  danger.  Captain  Franklin  was 
obliged  to  abandon  proceecBng  that  season  down  the 
river,  and  contented  himself  with  dispatching,  on  the 
29th,»Mr.  Back  and  Mr.  Hood,  in  a  light  canoe,  with 
St.  Germain  as  interpreter,  eight  Canadians,  and  one 
Indian,  furnished  with  eight  days'  provisions  —  all  that 
xjould  be  spared. 

They  returned  on  the  10th  «of  September,  after  hav- 
ing reached  and  coasted  Point  Lake.  In  the  mean  time; 
Franklin  and  Eichardson,  accompanied  by  J.  Hepburn 
and  two  Indians,  alsp  made  a  pedestrian  excui^ion  tow- 
ard the  same  quarter,  leaving  on  the  9th  of  September, 
and  returning  on  the  fourteenth.  The  whole  ^l^jj 
spent  a  long  winter  of  ten  months  at  Fort  Enterprise* 
depending  upcii  the  fish  they  could  catch,  and  the  6tic  ^ 
cess  of  their  lurliai  hunters,  for  food.  .  ,    ^     w 


fieanklin's  first  laxi)  £xpia>moN. 


*'j 


On  the  6th  of  October,  the  officers  quitted  their  tents 
for  a  good  log  house  which  had  been  built.  The  clay 
with  which  tlie  walls  and  roof  were  plastered,  had  to 
be  tempered  before  the  fire  with  water,  and  froze  as  it 
was  daubed  on  ;  but  afterward  cracl^ed  in  such  a  man- 
ner, as  to  admit  the  wind  from  every  quarter.  Still 
the  new  abode,  with  a  good  fire  of  fagots  in  the  papa- 
clous  clay-built  chimney^  was  considered  quite  comfort- 
able when  compared  with  the  chilly  tents. 

The  reindeer  are  found  on  the  banks  of  the  Copper- 
mine River  early  in  May,  as  they  then  go  to  the  sea- 
coaet  to  Ibring  forth  their  young.  They  usually  retire 
from  the  coast  in  July  and  August,  rut  in  October,  and 
shelter  themselves  in  the  woods  during  winter.  Before 
the  middle  of  October,  the  carcasses  of  one  hundred 
deer  had  been  secured  in  their  store-house,  together  with 
one  thousand  pounds  of  suet,  and  some  dried  meat ; 
and  eighty  deer  were  stowed  awav  at  various  distances 
from  their  house,  en  cache.  This  placing  provisions 
"en  cache,"  is  merely  burying  and  protecting  it  from 
wolves  and  other  depredators,  by  heavy  loads  of  wood 
ot  stone. 

On  the  18th  of  October,  Mr.  Back  and  Mr.  Wentzel, 
accompanied  by  two  Canadian  voyageurs,  two  Indians 
and  their  Hives,  set  out  for  Fort  !rrovidence  to  make 
the  necessary  arrangements  for  transporting  the  stores 
they  expected  from  Cumberland  House,  and  to  see  if 
sonae  further  supplies  migbt  not  be  obtained  from  the 
establishments  on  Slave  Lake.  Dispatches  for  Eng- 
land were  also  forwarded  by  them,  detailing  the  pro- 
gress of  the  expedition  up  to  this  date.  By  the  end  of 
the  month  the  men  had  also  completed  a  house  for 
themselves,  34  feet  by  18.  On  the  26th  of  October, 
Akaitcho,  and  hie  Indian  party  of  hunters,  amounting 
with  woir^n  and  children  to  forty  souls,  came  in,  owinw 
to  the  de4r  haviug  migrated  southward.  This  added 
to  the  daily  number  to  be  provided  for,  and  by  this  time 
their  ammunition  was  nearly  expended. 

The  fishing  failed  as  the  weather  became  more  severe, 
and  was  given  up  on  the  5th  of  N^apmber.    About 


f 


ee 


PROGRESS   OF  ARCTIC   DISCOVERT. 


1200  white  fish,  of  from  two  to  three  pounds,  had  heen 
procured  during  the  season.  The  fish  froze  as  they 
were  taken  from  the  nets,  becoming  in  a  short  time  a 
solid  mass  of  ice,  so  that  a  blow  or  two  of  the  hatchet 
would  easily  split ^them  open,  when  the  intestines  miffht 
be  removed  in  one  lump.  If  thawed  before  the  hre, 
even  after  being  frozen  for  nearly  two  days,  the  fish 
would  recover  their  animation. 

On  the  23d  of  November,  they  were  gratified  by  the 
appearance  of  one  of  the  Canadian  voyageurs  who  had 
set  out  with  Mr.  Back.  His  locks  were  matted  with 
snow,  and  he  was  so  encrusted  with  ice  frouf  head  to 
foot,  that  they  could  scarcely  recognize  him.  He  re- 
ported that  they  had  had  a  tedious  and  fatiguing  iour- 
ney  taFort  Providence,  and  for  some  days  were  desti- 
tute of  provisions.  Letters  were  brought  from  England 
to  the  preceding  April,  and  quickly  was  the  packet 
thawed  to  get  at  the  contents.  The  newspapers  con- 
veyed the  intelligence  of  the  death  of  George  UI.  The 
advices  as  to  the  expected  stores  were  disheartening ; 
of  ten  bales  of  ninety  pounds  each,  five  had  been  lift 
by  some  mismanagement  at  the  Grand  Rapid  on  thtj 
Sattkatchawan.  On  the  28th  of  November,  St.  Ger- 
main the  interpreter,  with  eight  Canadian  voyageurs, 
and  four  Indian  hunters,  were  sent  off  to  lying  up  the 
stores  from  Fort  Providence.  .  - 

On  the.  10th  of  December,  Franklin  managed  to  get 
rid  of  Akaitcho  and  his  Indian  party,  by  representing 
to  them  the  impossibility  of  maintaining  them.  The 
leader,  however,  left  them  his  mother  and  t^o  female 
attendants;  and  old  Kaskarrah,  the  guide,  with  his  wife 
and  daughter,  remained  behind.  This  daughter,  who 
was  designated  "  Green  Stockings,"  from  her  dress,  was 
considered  a  great  beauty  by  her  tribe,  and  although 
but  sixteen,  had  belonged  successiTel^  to  two#iusbanas, 
and  would  probably  have  been  the  wife  of  dgmj  more, 
if  her  mother  had  not  required  her  services  as  a  nurse. 

Mr,  Hood  took  a  good  likeness  of  the  young  lady, 
but  her  mother  was  somewhat  averse  to  her  sitting  for 
It,  fearing  tthat^her  daughter's  likeness  would  induct 


*(;■ 


w 


^w 


VtUHKLia  S  VlUSrT  lAN'D  ]£XP£DITION.  Ww 

tho  Great  Chief  who  resided  in  England  to  send  for  the 
•original!" 

The  diet  of  the  party  in  their  winter  abode  consisted 
almost  entirely  of  reindeer  meat,  varied  twice  a  week 
by  fish,  and  occaiftnally  by  a  little  flour,  but  they  had 
no  vegetables  of  anv  kmd.    On  Sunday  morning  they 


and  strips  of  cotton  shirts;  and  Hepburn  acquired  con- 
siderable M? '  the  manufacture  '**  ''oap  from  the  wood 
ashes,  fa-  ..nd  t.  The  stores  \v  .i^  anxiously  looked 
for,  and  it  was  hoped  they  would  have  awived  by  New 
Year's  Day,  (1821,)  so  as  to  have  kept  the  festival.  As 
it  was,  they  could  only  receive  a  little  flour  and  &t,  both 
of  which  were  c&nsidered  great  luxuries. 

On  the  15th,  seven  of  the  men  arrived  with  two  kegs 
of  rum,  one  barrel  of  powder,  sixty  pounds  of  ball,  two 
rolls  of  tobacco,  and  some  clothing. 

"  They  had  been  twenty-one  days  on  their  march  from 
Slave  Lake,  and  the  labor  they  underwent  was  sufS- 
^ntly  evinced  by  their  sledge  collars  having  worn  oat 
the  shoulders  of  their  coats.  Their  loads  weighed  from 
sixty  to  ninety  pounds  each,  exclusive  of  their  bedding 
and  provisions,  which  at  starting  must  have  been  at  least 
as  much  more.  "We  were  much  rejoiced  at  their  arrival, 
and  proceeded  forthwith  to  pierce  the  spirit  cask,  and 
issue  to  each  of  the  househcJd  the  portion  of  rum  which 
had  been  promised  on  the  first  day  of  the  year.  The 
spirits,  which  were  proof,  were  frozen;  btit  after  stand- 
ing at  the  fire  for  some  time  they  flowed  out,  of  the 
consistence  of  honey.  The  temperature  of  the  liquid, 
even  in  this  state,  was  so  low  as  instantly  to  convert 
into  ice  the  moisture  which  condensed  on  the  surface  of 
the  dram-fflass.  The  fingers  also  adhered  to  the  glass, 
and  would  doubtless  have  been  speedily  frozen  had  they 
been  kept  in  contact  with  it ;  yet  each  of  the  voyagenrs 
swallowed  his  dram  without  experiencing  the  slightest 
inconvenience,  or  complaining  of  toothache." 

It  appeared  that  the  Oa'^mllans  had|i|pped  the  run) 


08 


KIOGKIJBS   OF   AKCTIC  DISCOVERT. 


cask  on  their  journey,  aad  helped  themselves  rather 
freely. 

i  On  the  27ta,  Mr.  "Wentzel  and  St.  Germain  arrived, 
with  two  Esquimaux  interpreters  wh^ad  been  engaged, 
possessed  of  euphonious  names,  rej^resenting  the  belly 
and  the  ear,  but  which  had  been  An^icised  into  Au- 
gustus and  Junius,  beinff  the  months  they  had  respec- 
tively arrived  at  Fort  Churchill.  The  former  spoke 
English.  They  brought  four  dc^  with  them,  which 
proved  of  great  use  during  the  season  in  drawing  in 
wood  for  fuel. 

Mr.  Back,  at  this  time,  the  24th  of  December,  had 
gone  on  to  Chipewyan  to  procure  stores.  On  the  12th 
of  February,  another  party  of  six  men  was  sent  to  Fort 
Providence  to  bring  up  the  remaining  supplies,  and 
these  returned  on  the  6th  of  March.  Many  of  the  caches 
of  meat  which  had  been  buried  early  in  the  winter  were 
found  destroyed  by  the  wolves  ;  and  some  of  these  ani 
mals  prowled  nightly  about  the  dwellings,  even  ventur 
inff  upon  the  roof  of  their  kitchen.  The  rations  were 
reduced  from  eight  to  the  short  allowance  of  five  ouncM 
of  animal  food  per  day.  ^ 

On  the  ITth  of  March,  Mr.  Back  returned  from  Fort 
Chipewyan,  after  an  absence  of  nearly  five  months, 
during  which  he  had  performed  a  journey  on  foot  of 
more  than  eleven  hundred  miles  on  snow  shoes,  with 
only  the  slight  shelter  at  night  of  a  blanket  and  a  deer 
skin,  with  tne  thermometer  frequently  at  40°  and' 'once 
at  57°,  and  very  often  passing  several  days  without 
food. 

Some  very  interesting  traits  of  generosity  on  the  part 
of  the  Indians  are  recorded  by  l£*.  Back.  Often  they 
gave  up  and  would  not  taste  of  fish  or  birds  which  they 
caught,  with  the  touching  remark,  "  We  are  accustomed 
to  starvation,  and  you  are  not." 

Such  passages  as  the  following  often  occur  in  his 
narrative  : — "  One  of  our  men  caught  a  fish,  which,  with 
ihe  assistance  of  soipe  weed  scraped  from  the  rocks, 
{tripe  de  roche)  which  forms  a  glutinous  substance,  made 
OS.  a  tolerable  ^ilr  ^^* :  it  w«is  not  of  the  most  choice  kind, 


FRANKLIN  8  FIRST  JJiND  KXPKDITIOX. 


yet  good  enough  for  hungry  men.  While  we  were  eat- 
ing it,  I  perceived  one  of  the  women  bneily  employed 
scraping  an  old  skin,  the  contents  of  which  her  husband 
presented  us  with.  They  consisted  of  pounded  meat, 
fat,  and  a  greater  proportion  of  Indian's  and  deer's  hair 
than  either ;  and,  though  such  a  mixture  may  not  appear 
very  alluring  to  an  ^Siglish  stomach,  it  was  thought  a 
great  luxury  after  three  days'  privation  in  these  cheer- 
less regions  of  America." 

To  return  to  the  proceedings  of  Fort  Enterprise.  On 
the  23d  of  March,  the  last  of  the  winter's  stock  of  deer's 
meat  was  expended,  and  the  party  were  compelled  to 
consume  a  little  pounded  meat,  which  had  been  saved 
fo#  making  pemmican.  The  nets  scarcely  produced  any 
fish,  and  their  meals,  which  had  hitherto  been  scanty 
enough,  were  now  restricted  to  one  in  the  day. 

The  poor  Indian  families  about  the  house,  consisting 
principally  of  sick  and  infirm  women  and  children,  su? 
fered  even  more  privation.  They  cleared  away  the 
snow  on  the  site  of  the  Autumn  encampment  to  look  for 
^nes,  deer's  feet,  bits  of  hide,  and  other  offal.  "  When 
^ys  Franklin)  we  beheld  them  gnawing  the  pieces  of 
hide,  and  pounding  the  bones  for  the  purpose  ot  extract- 
some  nourishment  from  them  by  boiling,  we  regret 


ted  our  inability  to  relieve  them,  but  little  tnought  that 
we  should  ourselves  be  afterward  driven  to  the  neces- 
sity of  eagerly  collecting  these  same  bones,  a  second 
time  from  the  dung-hill.''^ 

On  the  4th  of  June,  1821,  a  first  party  set  off  from 
the  winter  quarters  for  Poin*  Lake,  and  the  Ooppermino 
River,  under  the  cha^e  of  Dr.  Eichardson,  consisting, 
in  all,  voyageurs  and  Indians,  of  twenty-three,  exclusive 
of  children.  Each  of  the  men  carried  about  80  lbs.,  be- 
sides his  own  personal  baggage,  -Weighing  nearlv  as 
much  more.  Some  of  the  party  dragged  their  Joads  on 
sledges,  others  preferred  carrying  their  burden  on  their 
backs.  On  the  13th,  Dr.  Richardson  sent  back  most  of 
the  men ;  and  on  the  14th  Franklin  dispatched  Mr, 
Wentzel  and  a  party  with  the  canoes,  which  had  been 
repaired.    Following  the  water-coursdjlte  far  as  practi* 


70 


paoGKEss  OF  Aiicrno  dibcoveey.  ir^ 


cable  to  Winter  Lake,  Franklin  followed  himself  with 
Hepburn,  three  Canadians,  two  Indian  hunters,  and 
the  two  Esquimaux,  and  joined  Dr.  Kichardson  on  the 
22d.  On  the  25th  they  all  resumed  their  journey,  and, 
as  they  proceeded  down  the  river,  were  fortunate  in 
killing,  occasionally,  several  musk  oxen. 

On  the  15th  thev  got  a  distinct  view  of  the  sea  from 
the  summit  of  a  hill ;  it  appeared  choked  with  ice  and 
full  of  islands.  About  this  time  they  fell  in  with  small 
parties  of  Esquimaux. 

On  the  19th  Mr.  "Wentzel  departed  on  his  return  for 
Slave  Lake,  taking  with  him  four  Canadians,  who  had 
been  discharged  for  the  purpose  of  reducing  the  expen- 
diture  of  provisions  as  much  as  possible,  and  dispatches 
to  be  forwarded  to  England.  He  was  also  instructed 
to  cause  the  Indians  to  deposit  a  relay  of  provisions  at 
Fort  Enterprise,  ready  for  the  party  should  they  return 
that  way.  The  remainder  of  the  party,  including  offi- 
cers, amounted  to  twenty  persons.  The  distance  that 
had  been  traversed  from  Fort  Enterprise  to  the  mouth 
of  the  river  was  about  334  miles,  and  the  canoes  had  to 
be  dragged  120  miles  of  this.  ^ 

Two  conspicuous  capes  were  named  by  Franklin  after 
Heaiiie  and  Mackenzie  ;  and  a  river  which  falls  iiito  the 
sea,  to  the  westward  of  the  Coppermine,  he  called  after 
his  companion,  Bichardson. 

On  the  21st  of  July,  Franklin  and  his  party  embarked 
in  their  two  canoes  to  navigate  the  Polar  Sea,  to  the 
eastward,  having  with  them  provisions  for  fifteen  days. 

On  the  25th  they  doubled  a  bluff  cape,  which  was 
named  after  Mr.  Barrow,  of  the  Admiralty.  An  open- 
ing on  its  eastern  side  received  the  appellation  of  inman 
Harbor,  and  a  group  of  islands  were  called  after  Pro- 
fessor Jameson.  "Within  the  next  fortnight,  additions 
were  made  to  their  stock  of  food  by  a  few  deer  and  one 
or  two  bears,  which  were  shot,  feeing  less  fortunate 
afterward,  and  with  no  prospect  of  increasing  their  sup- 
ply of  provision,  the  daily  allowance  to  eadi  man  wap 
limited  to  a  ha^df^i  of  pepimican  and  a  small  portion 
of  portable  sou|i^  ;«» 


franklin's  FIKRT   land   EXPEDlTIOBf. 


n 


On  the  morning  of  the  6th  of  Aii^ist  they  came  to 
the  mouth  of  a  river  blocked  up  with  shoals,  which 
Franklin  named  after  liis  friend  and  companion  Back. 

The  time  spent  in  exploring  Arctic  and  Melville 
Sounds  and  Bathuret  Inlet,  and  the  failure  of  meeting 
with  Esquimaux  from  whom  provisions  could  be  ob- 
tained, precluded  any  possibility  of  reaching  Repulse 
Bay,  and  therefore  having  but  a  day  or  two's  provisJons 
left,  Franklin  considered  it  prudent  to  turn  oack  after 
reaching  Point  Tumagain,  naving  sailed  nearly  600 
geographical  miles  in  tracing  the  deeply  indented  ^joast 
of  Coronation  Gulf  from  the  Coppermine  River.  On 
the  22d  August,  the  return  voyage  was-  commenced, 
the  boats  making  for  Hood's  River  by  the  way  of  the 
Arctic  Sound,  and  being  taken  as  far  up  the  stream  as 
possible.  On  the  31st  it  was  found  impossible  to  pro- 
ceed with  them  farther,  and  smaller  canoes  were  made, 
suitable  for  crossing  any  of  the  rivers  that  might  ob- 
struct their  progress.  The  weight  carried  by  each  man 
was  about  90  lbs.,  and  with  this  thej  progressed  at  the 
rate  of  a  mile  an  hour,  including  rests. 

On  the  6th  of  September,  having  nothing  to  eat,  the 
last  piece  of  pemmican  and  a  little  arrow-root  having 
formed  a  scanty  supper,  and  being  without  the  means 
of  making  a  fire,  they  remained  in  bed  all  day.  A  se- 
vere snow-storm  lasted  two  days,  and  the  snow  even 
drifted  into  their  tents,  covering  their  blankets  several 
inches.  "  Our  suffering  (says  Franklin)  from  cold,  in  a 
comfortless  canvass  tent  in  such  weather,  with  the  tem- 
perature at  20°,  and  without  fire,  will  easilv  be  im- 
agined ;  it  was,  however,  less  than  that  which  we  felt 
from  hunger." 

Weak  from  fasting,  and  their  garments  stiffened  with 
the  frost,  after  packing  their- frozen  tents  and  bedcloches 
the  poor  travelers  again  set  out  on  the  7th.  . 

After  feeding  almost  exclusively  on  several  species 
of  Gyrophora,  a  lichen  known  as  tripe  de  roehe^  which 
scarcely  allayed  the  pan^  of  hunger,  on  the  10th  "  they 
got  a  good  meal* by  killing  a  musk  ox.  To  skin  and 
cut  up  the  ar^maJ  vas  the  work  of  a  few  minutes.    The 


*> 


72 


PKOORKS8  or  Anono  discovkuy. 


contents  of  its  Btomjich  were  devoured  upon  the  spot, 
und  the  raw  intestiues,  whicU  were  next  attacked,  were 
pronounced  by  the  most  delicate  amongst  us  to  be  ex- 
cellent." 

'  Wearied  and  worn  out  with  toil  and  sufiering,  many 
of  the  party  got  careless  and  indifferent  One  of  the 
eanoea  was  oroken  and  abandoned.  Witli  an  improvi- 
dence scarcely  to  be  credited,  thi*ee  of  the  lishing-nets 
were  also  thrown  away,  and  the  floats  biunt 

On  the  17th  they  managed  to  allay  the  pangs  of  hun- 
ger by  eating  pieces  of  singed  hide,  and  a  little  trme  de 
rocKe.  This  and  some  mosses,  witji  an  occasional  sol- 
itary partridge,  formed  their  invariable  food ;  on  very 
many  days  even  this  scanty  supply  could  not  be  obtained, 
and  their  appetites  became  ravenous. 

Occasionally  they  picked  up  pieces  of  skin,  and  a 
few  bones  of  deer  which  had  been  devoured  by  the 
wolves  in  the  previous  spring.  The  bones  were  ren- 
dered friable  by  burning,  and  now  and  then  their  old 
shoes  were  added  to  the  repast. 

On  the  26th  they  reached  a  bend  of  the  Coppermine, 
which  terminated  in  Point  Lake.  The  second  canoe 
had  been  demolished  and  abandoned  by  the  beurers  on 
the  2M,  and  they  were  thus  left  without  any  means  of 
water  transport  across  M^e  lakes  and  river. 

On  this  day  the  carcass  of  a  deer  was  discovered  in 
the  cleft  of  a  rock,  into  which  it  had  fallen  in  the  spring. 
It  was  putrid,  but  little  less  acceptable  to  the  poor  starv- 
ing travelers  on  that  account ;  and  a  fire  being  kin- 
dled a  large  portion  was  devoured  on  the  spot,  atlbrd- 
ing  an  unexpected  break&st. 

On  the  first  of  October  one  of  the  party,  who  had 
been  out  hunting,  brought  in  the  antlers  and  backbone 
of  another  deer,  which  had  been  killed  in  the  summer. 
The  wolves  and  birds  of  prey  had  picked  them  clean, 
but  there  still  remained  a  quantity  of  the  spinal  raar- 
^w,  which  they  had  not  been  able  to  extract.  Tliis, 
although  putrid,  was  esteemed  a  valuable  prize,  and 
the  spme  oeing  divided  into  portions  was  distributed 
equally.     "  Anei  eating  the  mairow,  (says  Franklin,) 


^ 


FRANKLID^g   riBST  IJLIfD  EXPKDITTON. 


73 


wlitch  was  so  acrid  as  to  oxcoriato  the  lipe,  we  ren- 
dered the  bones  friable  by  burning,  and  ate  them  also." 

The  strength  of  the  wnole  part^  now  began  to  fail, 
from  the  privation  and  fatigue  which  they  endured. — 
Franklin  was  in  a  dreadfully  debilitated  state.  Mr. 
Hood  was  also  reduced  to  a  perfect  shadow,  from  the 
severe  bowel-complaints  which  the  tripe  de  roohe  never 
failed  to  give  him.  Back  was  so  feeble  as  to  require 
the  support  of  a  stick  in  walkings  and  Dr.  Bichardson 
had  lameness  superadded  to  weakness. 

A  rude  canoe  was  constructed  of  willows,  covered 
with  canvass,  in  which  the  party,  one  by  one,  managed 
to  reach  in  safety  the  soutnem  bank  of  the  river  on 
the  4th  of  October,  and  went  suppei'lcss  to  bed.  On 
the  following  morning,  previous  to  setting  ont,  the 
whole  party  ate  the  remains  of  their  old  shoes,  and 
whatever  scraps  of  leather  they  had,  to  strtngthtja  their 
stomachs  for  the  fatigue  of  the  day's  journey. 

Mr.  Hood  now  broke  down,  as  did  two  or  three  mo  %.' 
of  the  party,  and  Dr.  Richardson  kindly  volunteik*ed 
to  remain  with  them,  while  the  rest  pushed  ai  co  Fort 
Enterprise  for  succor.  Not  being  able  to  fine  any  tripe 
de  rochey  they  drank  an  infusion  of  the  Labrador  tea- 
plant  {Ledrum  palustre^  var.  decumhens,)ja,nd  ate  a 
few  jnorsels  of  burnt  leaUier  for  supper.  This  contin- 
ued to  be  a  frequent  occurrence. 

Others  of  the  party  continued  to  drop  down  with  fa- 
tigue and  weakness,  until  they  were  reduced  to  five 
persons,  besides  Franklin.  Wnen  they  had  no  food  or 
nourislvment  of  any  kind,  they  crept  under  their  blank- 
ets, to  drown,  if  possible,  the  gnawing  pangs  of  hunger 
and  fatigue  by  sleep.  At  length  tL  3"  reached  Fort  En- 
terprise, and  to  their  disappointm«ui;  ^  and  grief  £[>und 
it  a  perfectly  desolate  habitation.  There  was  no  de- 
^sit  of  provision,  no  trace  of  the  Indians,  no  letter 
trom  Mr.  "Wentzel  to  point  out  where  the  Indians  might 
be  found.  "It  would  be  hnpossible  (says  Franklin,)  to 
describe  our  sensations  after  entering  this  miserable 
abode,  and  discovering  how  we  had  been  neglected  :• 
the  whole  party  shed  tears,  not  so  much  for;  our  owu; 


x 


74 


PBOGS£SS   OF  ARCrnO  DISCOVERY. 


fate  a*  for  that  of  our  friends  in  the  rear,  whose  lives 
depended  entirely  on  our  sending  immediate  relief 
from  this  place."  A  note,  however,  was  found  here 
from  Mr.  Back,  stating  that  he  had  reached  the  house 
by  another  route  two  days  before,  and  was  goinff  in 
search  of  the  Indians.  If  he  was  unsuccessful  in  find- 
ing them,  he  proposed  walking  to  Fort  Providence, 
and  sending  succor  from  thence,  but  he  doubted  whether 
he  or  his  party  could  perform  the  journey  to  that  place 
in  their  present  debilitated  state.  Franklin  and  his 
small  party  now  looked  round  for  some  means  of  pres- 
ent subsistence,  and  fortunately  discovered  several  deer 
skins,  which  had  been  thrown  away  during  their  former 
residence  here.  The  bones  were  gathered  from  the 
heap  of  ashes ;  these,  with  the  skins  and  the  addition 
of  tripe  de  roche^  they  considered  would  support  life 
tolerably  well  for  a  short  time.  The  bones  were  quite 
acrid,  and  the  soup  extracted  from  them,  quite  putrid, 
excoriated  the  mouth  if  taken  alone,  but  it  was  some- 
what milder  when  boiled  with  the  lichen,  and  the  mix- 
ture was  even  deemed  palatable  with  a  little  salt,  of 
which  a  cask  had  been  left  here  in  the  spring.  They 
procured  fuel  by  pulling  up  the  flooring  of  the  rooms, 
and  water  for  cooking  by  melting  the  snow.^ 

Augustus  arrived  safe  after  them,  just  as  they  were 
sitting  round  the  fire  eating  their  supper  of  singed 
skin. 

Late  on  the  13th,  Belanger  also  reached  the  house, 
with  a  note  from  Mr.  Back,  stating  that  he  had  yet 
found  no  trace  of  the  Indians.  The  poor  meSsenger 
was  almost  speechless,  being  covered  with  ice  and 
nearly  frozen  to  death,  having  fallen  into  a  rapid,  and 
for  thi  third  time  since  the  party  left  the  coast,  narrowly 
escaped  drowning.  After  being  well  rubbed,  having 
had  hi|^  dress  changed,  and  some  warm  soup  given 
him,  he  recovered  sufficiently  to  answer  the  questions 
put  to  him. 

Under  the  impression  that  the  Indians  must  t)e  on 
their  way  to  Fort  Providence,  and  that  it  would  be 
possible  tf  overtake  them,  as  they  usually  t'^aveled 


FRANKLINS   ritlST   LAND   EXPEDITION. 


i^ 


slowly  with  their  families,  and  there  being  likewise  a 
prospect  of  killing  deer  about  Reindeer  Lake,  where 
they  had  been  usually  found  abundant,  Franklin  de- 
termined to  take  the  route  for  that  post,  and  sent  word 
to  Mr.  Back  by  Belanger  to  that  effect  on  the  18th. 

On  the  20th  of  October,  Franklin  set  out  in  com- " 
pany  with  Benoit  and  Augustus  to  seek  relief,  having 
patched  three  pairs  of  snow  shoes,  and  taken  some 
singed  skin  for  their  support.  Pol  tier  and  Samandre 
had  volunteered  to  remain  at  the  house  with  Adam, 
who  was  too  ill  to  proceed.  They  were  so  feeble  as 
.scarcely  to  be  able  to  move.  Augustus,  the  Esqui- 
maux, tried  for  fish  without  success,  so  that  their  only 
fare  was  skin  and  tea.  At  night,  composing  them-* 
selves  to  rest,  they  lay  close  to  each  other  for  warmth, 
but  found  the  night  bitterly  cold,  and  the  wind  pierced 
through  their  famished  frames. 

On  resuming  the  journey  next  morning,  Franklin' 
had  the"  misfortune  to  break  his  snow-shoes,  by  falling 
between  two  rocks.  This  accident  prevented  him  from 
keeping  pace  with  the  others,  arid  in  the  attempt  he 
became  quite  exhausted ;  unwilling  to  delay  their  pro- 
gress, as  the  safety  of  all  behind  depended  on  their 
obtaining  eaetly  assistance  and  immediate  supplies, 
Franklin  resolved  to  turn  back,  while  the  others 
pushed  on  to  meet  Mr.  Back,  or,  missing  him,  they 
were  directed  to  proceed  to  Fort  Providence.  Frank- 
lin found  the  two  Canadians  he  had  left  at  the  house 
dreadfully  weak  and  reduced,  and  so  low  spirited  that 
he  had  great  difficulty  in  rallying  them  to  any  exer- 
tion. As  the  insides  of  their  mouths  had  become  sore 
from  eating  the  bone-soup,  they  now  relinqui&hed  the 
use  of  it,  and  boiled  the  skin,  which  mode  of  dressing 
was  fonnd  more  palatable  than  frying  it.  They  had 
pulled  down  nearly  all  their  dwelling  for  fuel,  to  warm 
themselves  and  cook  their  scanty  meals.  The  tripe 
de  Toche^  on  which  they  had  depended,  now  became 
entirely  frozen;  and  what  was  more  tantalizing  to 
their  perishing  frames,  was  the  sight  of  food  within 
their  reach,  whicli  they  could  not  procure.     "  We  saw 


76 


*\ 


'^    PROGRESS"  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERY. 


• 


(says  Franklin)  a  herd  of  reindeer  sporting  on  the 
river,  about  half  h  mile  from  the  house ;  they  re- 
mained there  a  long  time,  but  none  of  the  party  felt 
themselves  strong  enough  to  go  after  them,  nor  was 
there  one  of  us  who  could  have  fired  a  gun  without 
resting  it." 

While  they  were  seated  round  the  fire  this  evening, 
discoursing  about  the  anticipated  relief,  the  sound  of 
voices  was  heard,  which  was  thought  with  joy  to  be 
that  of  the  Indians,  but,  to  their  bitter  disappoint- 
ment, the  debilitated  frames  and  emaciated  counte- 
nances of  Dr.  Kichardson  and  Hepburn  presented 
themfeelves  at  the  door.  They  were  of  course  gladly 
received,  although  each  marked  the  ravages  which  fam- 


ine, care  and 


fatigue 


had  made  on  the  other.    The 


■  Doctor  particularly  remarked  the  sepulchral  tone  of 
the  voices  of  his  friends,  which  he  requested  them  to 

*  make  more  cheerful  if  possible,  unconscious  that  his 
own  partook  of  the  same  key. 

Hepburn  having  sliot  a  partridge,  which  was  brought 
.  to  the  house,  Dr.  Richardson  tore  out  the  feathers, 
and  having  held  it  to  the  fire  a  few  minutes,  divided 
it  into  six  portions.  Franklin  and  his  three  compan- 
ions ravenously  devoured  their  shares,  as  it  was  the 
first  morsel  of  fiesh  any  of  them  had  tasted  for  thirty- 
one  days,  unless,  indeed,  the  small  gristly  particles 
which  they  found  adhering  to  the  pounded  bones  may 
be  termed  flesh.  Their  spirits  were  revived  by  this 
small  supply,  and  the  Doctor  endeavored  to  raise 
them  still  nigher  by  the  prospect  of  Hepburn's  being 
able  to  kill  a  deer  next  day,  as  they  had  seen,  and 
even  fired  at,  several  near  the  house.  He  endeavored, 
too,  to  rouse  them  into  some  attention  to  the  comfort 
of  their  apartment.  Having  brought  his  Prayer-book 
and  Teb lament,  some  prayers,  psalms,  and  portions 
of  scripture,  appropriate  to  their  situation,  were  read 
out  by  Dr.  Richardson,  and  they  retired  to  their 
blankets. 

-  Early  next  morning,  the  Doctor  and  Hepburn  went 
out  in  search  of  game ;  but  though  they  saw  several 


FZUNKUN^S  FZJUBT  LASD  I&XPEDniON. 


77 


herds  of  deer,  and  fired^i^ii^me  shots,  they  were  not  so 
fortunate  as  to  kill  any,  being  too  weak  to  hold  their 
guns  steadily.  The  cold  compelled  the  former  to  re- 
turn soon,  but  Hepburn  perseveringly  persisted  until 
late  in  the  evening.  f 

m  "  My  occupation,  (continues  Franklin)  was  to  search 
for  skins  under  th6  snow,  it  being  now  our  object  im- 
mediately to  get  all  that  we  could ;  but  I  had  not 
strength  to  drag  in  more  than  two  of  those  which  were 
within  twenty  yards  of  the  house,  until  the  Doctor 
came  and  assisted  me.  We  made  up  our  stock  to 
twenty-six;  but  several  of  them  were  putrid,  and 
scarcely  eatable,  even  by  men  suffering  the  extremity 
of  famine.  Peltier  and  Samandre  continued  very 
weak  and  dispirited,  and  they  were  unable  to  cut  fire- 
wood. Hepburn  had,  in  consequence,  that  laborious 
task  to  peiform  after  he  came  back  late  fVom  hunting.'' 
To  the  exertions,  honesty,  kindness,  and  consideration 
of  this  worthy  man,  the  safety  of  most  of  the  party  is 
to  be  attributed.  And  I  may  here  mention  that  Sir 
John  Franklin,  when  he  became  governor  of  Van 
Diemen!s  Land,  obtained  for  him  a  good  civil  appoint- 
ment. This  deserving  man,  I  am  informed  by  Mr. 
Barrow,  is  now  in  England,  having  lost  his  office, 
which,  I  believe,  has  been  abolished.  It  is  to  be 
hoped  something  will  be  done  for  him  by  the  govern- 
ment. 

After  their  usual  supper  of  singed  skin  and  bone* 
soup,  Dr.  Richardson  acquainted  TranWin  with  the 
events  that  had  transpired  since  their  parting,  particu- 
larly with  the  afflictmg  circumstances  attending  the 
death  of  Mr.  Hood,  and  Michel,  the  Iroquois  ;  the  par- 
ticulars of  which  I  shall  now  proceed  to  condense  from 
his  narrative. 

After  Captain  Franklin  had  bidden  them  farewell, 
having  no  tripe  de  roche  they  drank  an  infiision  of  the 
country  tea-plant,  which  was  grateful  from  its  warmth, 
although  it  afforded  no  sustenance.  They  then  retii*ed 
to  bed,  and  kept  to  their  blankets  all  next  day,  as  the 
snow  drift  was  so  heavy  as  to  prevent  their  lighting  # 


T8 


FBOORB8B  OF  ABOTIO   DISCaVBBT. 


■% 


fire  with  the  green  and  frozen  willows,  which  were 
their  only  fuel. 

Through  the  extreme  kindness  and  forethought  of 
a  lady,  the  party,  previous  to  leaving  London,  had 
been  furnished  with  a  small  collection  of  religious 
books,  of  which,  (says  Bichardson,)  we  still  retained 
two  or  three  of  the  most  portable,  and  they  proved  of 
incalcolable  benefit  to  us. 

^^  We  read  portions  of  them  to  each  other  as  we  lay 
in  bed,  in  addition  to  the  morning  and  evening  service, 
and  found  that  they  inspired  us  on  each  perusal  with 
so  strong  a  sense  of  the  omnipresence  of  a  beneficent 
God,  that  our  situation,  even  in  these  wilds,  appeared 
no  longer  destitute ;  and  we  conversed  not  only  with 
calmness,  but  with  cheerfulness,  detailing  with  unre- 
strained confidence  the  past  events  of  our  lives,  and 
dwelling  with  hope  on  our  future  prospects."  How 
beautifiu  a  picture  have  we  here  represented,  of  true 
piety  and  resignation  to  the  divine  will  inducing  pa- 
tience and  submission  under  an  imezampled  load  of 
misery  and  privation. 

Michel,  the  Iroquois,  joined  them  on  the  9jth  of  Oc- 
tober, having,  there  is  strong  reason  to  believe,  mur- 
dered two  of  the  Canadians  who  were  with  him,  Jean 
Baptiste  Belanger  and  Perrault,  as  they  were  never 
seen  afterward,  and  he  gave  so  many  rambling  and 
contradictory  statements  of  his  proceedings,  that  no 
credit  could  be  attached  to  his  story. 

The  travelers  proceeded  on  their  tedious  joumey  by 
slow  stages.  Hr.  Hood  was  much  affected  with  dim 
ness  of  sight,  giddiness,  and  other  symptoms  of  ex 
treme  debility,  which  caused  them  to  move  slowly  and 
to  make  frequent  halts.  Michel  absented  himself  all 
day  of  the  10th,  and  only  arrived  at  their  encampment 
near  the  pines  late  on  the  11th. 

He  reported  that  he  had  been  in  chase  of  some  deer 
which  passed  near  his  sleeping  place  in  the  morning, 
and  although  he  did  not  come  up  with  them,  yet  he 
found  a  wolf  which  had  been  killed  by  the  stroke  of 
ft  deer's  horn,  and  had  brought  a  part  of  it.  ,.  ;►.        ,- 


FBANKIJN'8   FIR&r   LAND   EXPEWTIOIT. 


79 


Richardson  adds  — "We  implicitly  believed  this 
<tory  then,  but  afterward  became  aware  —  from  cir- 
cumstances, the  details  of  which  may  be  spared — that 
it  must  have  been  a  portion  of  the  body  of  Bel  anger, 
or  Perrault.  A  question  of  moment  here  presents  it- 
self— namely,  whether  he  actually  murdered  these 
men,  or  either  of  them,  or  whether  he  found  the  bodies 
in  the  snow.  Captain  Franklin,  who  is  the  best  able  to 
judge  of  this  matter,  from  knowing  their  situation  when 
he  parted  from  them,  suggested  the  former  idea,  and 
that  both  these  men  bad  been  sacrificed  ;  that  Michel, 
having  already  destroyed  Belanger,  completed  his 
crimeby  Perrault's  death,  in  order  to  screen  himself 
from  detection." 

Although  this  opinion  is  founded  only  on  circum- 
stances, and  is  unsupported  by  direct  evidence,  it  has 
been  judg|d  proper  to  mention  it,  esp'ecially  as  the 
subsequent  conduct  of  the  man  showed  that  he  was 
capable  of  committing  such  a  deed.  It  is  not  easy  to 
assign  any  other  adequate  motive  for  his  concealing 
from  Kichardson  that  Perrault  had  turned  back ;  while 
his  request,  over-night,  that  they  would  leave  him  the 
hatchet,  and  his  cumbering  himself  with  it  when  he 
went  out  in  the  morning,  unlike  a  hunter,  who  mal^s 
use  only  of  his  knife  when'  he  kills  a  deer,  seem  to 
indicate  that  he  took  it  for  the  purpose  of  cutting  up 
comething  that  he  knew  to  be  frozen. 

Michel  left  them  early  next  day,  refusing  Dr.  Ricb- 
ardson's  offer  to  accompany  him,  and  remained  out  all 
day.  He  would  not  sleep  in  the  tent  with  the  other 
two  at  night.  On  the  13th,  there  being  a  heavy  gale, 
they  passed  the  day  by  their  fire,  without  food.  Next 
day,  at  noon,  Michel  set  out,  as  he  said,  to  hunt,  but 
returned  unexpectedly  in  a  short  time.  This  conduct 
surprised  his  companions,  and  his  contradictory  and 
evasive  answers  to  their  questions  excited  their  sus- 
picions still  further.  He  subsequently  refused  either 
to  hunt  or  cut  wood,  spoke  in  a  very  surly  manner, 
and  threatened  to  leave  them.  When  reasoned  with 
by  Mr.  Hood,  his  anger  was  excited,  and  he  replied  it 


^'ii* 


fAOOSUSS   OF  ABCTIO  DISCOVERY,     f 


was  no  use  hantinff — there  wei'e  no  aninials,  And  they 
had  better  kill  and  eat  him. 

"At  this  period,"  observes  Dr.  Richardson,  "we 
avoided,  as  miieh  as  possible,  conversing  upon  the 
hopelessness  of  our  situation,  and  generally  endeav> 
ored  to  lead  the  conversation  toward  our  future  pros- 
pects in  life.  The  fact  is,  that  with  the  decay  ot  our 
strength,  our  minds  decayed,  and  we  were  no  longer 
able  to  bear  the  contemplation  of  the  horrors  that  sur- 
rounded us.  Yet  we  were  calm  and  resigned  to  our 
fate ;  not  a  murmur  escaped  us,  and  we  were  punctual 
and  fervent  in  our  addresses  to  the  Supreme  feeing." 

On  the  morning  of  the  20th,  they  again  urged  Michel 
to  go  a-hunting,  that  he  might,  if  possible,  leave  them 
some  provision,  as  he  intended  quitting  them  next 
day,  but  he  showed  great  unwillingness  to  go  out,  and 
lingered  about*the  lire  under  the  pretenso  of  cleaning 
his  gun.  After  the  morning  service  had  been  read. 
Dr.  Richardson  went  out  to  gather  some  tripe  de  roche^ 
leaving  Mr.  Hood  sitting  before  the  tent  at  the  fire* 
side,  arguing  with  Michel;  Hepburn  was  employed 
cutting  fife-wood.  While  they  were  thus  engaged, 
the  treacherous  Iroquois  took  the  opportunity  to  place 
his*gun  close  to  Mr.  Hood,  and  shoot  him  through  the 
head.  He  represented  to  his  companions  that  the  de- 
ceased had  killed  himself.  On  examination  of  the 
body,  it  was  found  that  the  shot  had  entered  the  back 
part  of  the  head  and  passed  out  at  the  forehead,  and 
that  the  muzzle  of  the  gun  had  been  applied  so  close 
as  to  set  fire  to  the  nightcap  behind.  Michel  pro- 
tested his  innocence  of  the  crime,  and  Hepburn  and 
Dr.  Kichardson  dared  not  openly  evince  their  suspi- 
cion of  his  guilt. 

Next  day.  Dr.  Elchardson  determined  on  going 
straight  to  the  Fort.  They  singed  the  hair  off  a  par» 
of  the  buffalo  robe  that  belonged  to  their  ill-fated  com 
panion,  and  boiled  and  ate  it.  In  the  course  of  theii 
march,  Michel  alarmed  them,  much  by  his  gesture! 
and  conduct,  was  constantly  mattering  to  himself,  ox- 
pressed  an  unwillingness  to  go  to  the  Fort,  and  tried 


franklin's  first  lakd  expeditioit. 


81 


pro- 
and 


to  pewnade  them  to  go  southward  to  the  woods,  where 
he  said  ho  could  maintain  himself  all  the  winter  by 
killing  deer.  "  In  consequence  of  this  behavior,  and 
the  expression  of  his  countenance,  I  requested  hinc 
(says  Kichardson)  to  leave  us,  and  to  go'to  the  south 
ward  by  himself.  This  proposal  increased  his  ill-na- 
ture ;  he  threw  out  some  obscui^e  hints  of  freeing 
himself  from  all  restraint  on. the  morrow  ;  and  I  over- 
heard him  muttering^lbreate  against  Hepburn,  whom 

,ving  told  stories  against  him. 

ime,  assumed  such  a  tone  of 

g  me,  as  evinced  that  he  eon- 

lely  i^^is  power ;  and  he  gave 

atred  toward  the  white 


he  openly  accused 
He  also,  for  the  fi 
superiority  in  addr 
siderwd  us  to  b^  30iif 
vent  to  several  expressi 


I 


)eople,  some  of  whom,  ^^^^<^)  ^^d  killed  and  eaten 
lis  uncle  and  two  of  ht^^lations.  In  -short,  taking 
every  circnia stance  of  h»  conduct  into  consideration, 
I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  he  would  attempt  to 
destroy  us  on  the  first  opportunity  that  offered,  and 
that  he  had  hitherto  abstained  from  doing  so  from  his 
ignorance  of  his  way  to  the  Fort,  but  that  he  would 
never  suiFer  us  to  go  thither  in  company  with  him. 
Hepburn  and  I  were  not  in  a  condition  to  resist  evMi 
an  open  attack,  nor  could  we  by  any  device  esc^e 
from  him — our  united  strength  was  far  inferior  to  his ; 
and,  beside  his  gun,  he  was  armed  with  two  pistols, 
an  Indian  bayonet,  and  a  knife. 

"  In  the  afternoon,  coming  to  a  rock  on  which  there 
was  some  tripe  de  roche,  he  halted,  and  said  he  would 
gather  it  while  we  went  on,  and  that  he  would  soon 
overtake  us. 

"  Hepburn  and  I  were  now  left  together  for  the  fii*st 
time  since  Mr.  Hood's  death,  and  he  acquainted  me  with 
several  material  circumstances,  which  lie  had  observed 
of  Michel's  behavior,  and  which  confirmed  me  in  the 
opinion  that  there  was  no  safety  for  us  except  in  his 
death,  and  he  offered  to  be  the  instrument  of  it.  I  de- 
termined, however,  as  I  was  thoroughly  convinced  of 
the  necessity  of-«uch  a  dreadful  act,  to  take  the  wholo 
responsibility  upon  myself;  and  immediately  upon  Mi 


%. 


m 


PKOGRESS  OF  ABTTIO  DISCOVERT.     '* 


chel's  coming  up,  I  put  an  end  to. his  life  by  shootintf 
bim  through  the  head  with  a  pietol.  Had  my  own  lite 
alone  been  threatened,"  observes  Richardson,  in  conclu- 
sion, "i  would  not  have  purchased  it  by  such  a  measure, 
but  I  considered  myselt  as  intrusted  also  with  the  pro- 
tection of  Hepburn's,  a  man  who,  by  his  humane  attei  - 
tions  and  devotedn^s,  bad  so  endeared  himself  to  me, 
that  I  felt  more  anxiety  fos  his  safety  than  for  my  own. 


"  Michel  had  gathered  no  trip< 
dent  to  us  that  he  had  halted  k)] 


roohe^  and  it  was  evi- 
urpose  v')f  putting 
of  attacling  us  — 
encamping." 

raey  as  Vefl  as  the 


l^i^iknbs  would  permit,  they 


his  gun  in  order  with  the  inten 
perhaps  while  we  were  in  the  ac 

Persevering  onward  i^thei  " 
Buow  storms  and  their  fe    "    " 

saw  several  herds  of  deer'^fbuf  Hepburn,  who  used  to 
be  a  good  marksman,  was  il^unalble  to  hold  the  guu 
straight.  Following  the  traclr  of  a  wolverin«iwhich  had 
been  dragging  something,  he  however  found  the  spine 
of  a  deer  which  it  had  dropped.  It  was  clean  picKed, 
and  at  least  one  season  old,  but  they  extracted  the  spinal 
marrow  from  it. 

A  species  of  comicularia,  a  kind  of  lichen,  was  also 
m^  with,  that  was  found  good  to  eat  when  moistened 
aira  toasted  over  the  fire.  They  had  still  some  pieces 
of  singed  buffalo  hide  remaining,  and  Hepburn,  on 
one  occasion,  killed  a  partridge,  after  firing  several 
times  at  a  flock.  About  dusk  of  the  29th  they  reached 
the  Fort. 

"JUpon  entering  the  desolate  dwelling,  we  had  the 
satisfaction  of  enabracing  Oapt.  Franklin,  but  no  words 
can  convey  an  idea  of  the  filth  and  wretchedness  that 
met  our  eyes  on  looking  around.  Gur  own  misery  had 
stolen  upon  us  by  degrees,  and  we  were  accustomed  to 
the  contemplation  of  each  other's  emaciated  figures; 
but  the  ghastly  countenances,  dilated  eye-balls,  and 
sepulchral  voices  of  Captain  Franklin  and  those  with 
him  were  more  than  we  could  at  first  bear." 
■i  Thus  ends  the  narrative  of  Richardson's  journey. 
^  To  resume  the  detail  of  proceedings  at  the  Fort.  On 
the  l«t  of  November  two  of  the  Canadians,  Pfeltier  and 
Samandre,  died  from  sheer  exhaustion. 


franklin's  fibst  land  expedition. 


S3 


On  the  7th  of  November  they  were  relieved  from 
their  privations  and  sufferings  by  the  arrival  of  tliree 
Indians,  bringing  a  supply  of  dried  meat,  some  fat,  and 
a  few  tongues,  which  nad  been  sent  off  by  Back  with 
all  haste  from  Akaitcho's  encampment  on  the  5th. 
These  Indians  nursed  and  attended  them  with  the 
greatest  care,  cleansed  the  house,  collected  fire-wood, 
and  studied  every  means  for  tkeir  general  comfort.  Their 
sufferings  were  now  at  im  end.  On  the  26th  of  Noveni 
ber  thev  arrived  at  thjS  encampment  of  the  Indian  chief, 
Akaitcho.  On  the  0i  of  December  Belanger  and  an- 
other Canadian  arrived,  bringing  further  supplies,  and 
letters  from  England,  iflrom  ]N&.  Sack,  and  their  former 
companion,  Mr.  "WentzeL? 

The  dispatches  from  En^g^nd  announced  the  success- 
ful terminojtton  of  Captain  Carry's  voyage,  and  the  pro- 
motion of  €ptptain  FranHin,  Mr.  Back,  and  of  poor  Mr. 
Hood. 

On  the  18th  they  reached  the  Hudson's  Bav  Compa- 
ny's establishment  at  Moose  Deer  Island,  where  they 
joined  their  friend  Mr.  Back.  They  remained  at  Fort 
Chipewyan  until  June  of  the  following  year. 

It  is  now  necessary  to  relate  the  story  of  Mr.  Baol^'s 
journey,  whicn,  like  the  rest,  is  a  sad  tale  of  suffering 
and  privation. 

Having  been  directed,  on  the  4th  of  October,  1821, 
to  proceed  with  St  Germain,  Belanger,  and  Beaupar- 
lant  to  Fort  Enterprise,  in  the  hopes  of  obtaining  relief 
for  the  part^he  set  out.  Up  to  the  7th  they  met  with 
a  little  triple  roche^  but  tms  failing  them  thev  wei© 
compelled  to  satisfy,  or  rather  allay,  the  cravings  of 
hunger,  by  eating  a  gun-cover  and  a  pair  of  old  shoes. 
The  grievous  disappointment  experienced  on  arriving 
at  the  house,  and  finding:  it  a  deserted  ruin,  cannot  be 
told.  ^ 

"Without  the  assistance  of  the  Indians,  bereft  of 
every  resource,  we  felt  ourselves,"  says  Mr.  Back,  "  re- 
duced to  the  most  miserable  state,  which  was  rendered 
still  worse  from  the  recollection  that  our  friends  in  the 
rear  were  as  miserable  as  ourselves.    For  the  moment, 

D 


\" 


84 


PROGRESS  OF  ARC  TIO   DISCOVKRY. 


however,  hunger  provailed,  and  eacli  hcsan  to  j^aw 
the  scraps  of  putrid  and  frozen  moat  and  sKin  tliat  were 
lying  about,  without  waiting  to  prepare  them."  A  fire 
was,  however,  afterward  made,  and  the  neck  and  bones 
of  a  deer  found  in  tlie  house  were  boiled  and  devoured  < 

Ai>pr  resting  a  day  at  the  house,  Mr.  Back  pushed  on 
with  his  companions  in  rcarch  of  the  Indians,  leaving  a 
note  for  Captain  Franklin,  informing  him  if  he  failed  in 
meeting  with  the  Indians,  he  ii^nded  to  push  on  for 
the  firet  trading  establishment^- distant  about  130 
miles  —  and  send  us  succor  from  fbence.  On  the  lltb 
he  set  out  on  the  journey,  a  few  old  skins  having  been 
first  collected  to  serve  as  food. 

On  the  13th  and  14th  of  October  they  had  nothing 
whatever  to  eat.  Belanger^yas  sent  off  with  a  note  to 
Franklin.  On  the  15th  they  were  fortuna^ enough  to 
fall  in  with  a  partridge,  the  bones  of  which  were  eaten, 
and  the  remainder  reserved  for  bait  to  fish  with. 
Enough  tripe  de  roc  he  was,  however,  gathered  to  make 
a  meal.  Beauparlant  now  lingered  oehind,  worn  out 
by  extreme  weakness.  On  the  17th  a  number  of  crows, 
perched  on  some  high  pines,  led  them  to  believe  that 
Bo;[^e  carrion  was  near ;  and  on  searching,, several  heads 
of  deer,  half  buried  in  the  snow  and  ice,  without  eyes 
or  tongues,  were  found.  An  expression  of  "  Oh,  merci- 
ful God,  we  are  saved,"  broke  from  them  both  and  with 
feelings  more  easily  imagined  than  described,  they 
shook  hands,  not  knowing  what  to  say  for  joy. 

St.  Germain  was  sent  back,  to  bring  up  j^eauparlant, 
for  whose  safety  Back  became  very  anxious,  out  he 
found  the  poor  fellow  frozen  to  death. 

The  night  of  the  17th  was  cold  and  clear,  but  they 
could  get  no  sleep.  "  From  the  pains  of  having  eaten, 
we  suffered  (observes  Back)  the  most  excruciatmg  tor- 
^  ments,  though  I  in  particular  did  not  eat  a  quarter  of 
'  what  would  have  satisfied  me ;  it  might  have  been  from 
having  eaten  a  quantity  of  raw  or  frozen  sinews  of  the 
legs  ot  deer,  which  neither  of  us  could  avoid  doing,  so 
great  was  our  hunger." 

On  the  following  day  Belanger  returned  famishing 


fABRV  8    Fllttir    VOVAOB. 


It  were 
A  fire 
I  bones 
iroured- 
}hed  on 
aving  a 
Eiiled  in 
1  on  for 
►ut  130 
he  lltb 
ig  been 

nothing 
I  note  to 
lOUgh  to 
re  eaten, 
jh  with, 
to  make 
«rorn  out 
of  crowB, 
ieve  that 
•al  heads 
out  eyes 
merci- 
and  with 
ed,  they 

iparlant, 
but  he 

)ut  they 
g  eaten, 
,ting  tor- 
.larter  of 
een  from 
ms  of  the 
iloing,  so 


cmishinflf 


vvith  hunger,  and  told  of  the  i)itiablo  state  of  Franklin 
and  his  reduced  party.  Baclc,  both  this  day  and  tlio 
next,  tried  to  urge  on  his  companions  toward  the  object 
of  their  journey,  but  he  could  not  conquer  their  itub- 
born  determinations.  They  said  they  were  unable  to 
proceed  from  weakness  ;  knew  not  the  way  ;  that  I3ack 
wanted  to  expose  them  again  to  death,  and  in  fact  loi- 
tered greedily  about  the  remnants  of  the  deer  till  the 
end  ot  the  month.  "  It  was  not  without  the  gi-eatest 
difficulty  that  I  could  restrain  the  men  from  eating  ev- 
ery scrap  they  found  ;  though  mey  were  well  aw;are  of 
the  necessity  there  was  of  being  economical  in  our  pres- 
ent situation,  and  to  save  whatever  they  could  for  our 
joui-ney,  yet  they  could  not  resist  the  temptation  ;  and 
whenever  my  back  was  turned  they  seldom  failed  to 
snatch  at  the  nearest  piece  to  them,  whether  cooked  or 
raw.  Having  collected  with  great  care,  and  by  self- 
denial,  two  small  packets  of  dried  meat  or  sinews  suffi- 
cient (for  men  who  knew  what  it  was  to  fast)  to  last  for 
eight  days,  at  the  rate  of  one  indifterent  meal  per  da}',  * 
they  set  out  on  the  30th.  On  the  3d  of  November  they 
came  on  the  track  of  Indians,  and  soon  reached  the 
tents  of  Akaitcho  and  his  followers,  when  food  was 
obtained,  and  assistance  sent  off  to  Franklin. 

In  July  they  reached  York  Factory,  from  whence 
they  had  started  three  years  before,  and  thus  tenninated 
a  journey  of  6660  miles,  during  which  human  courage 
and  patience  were  exposed  to  trials  such  as  few  can  ' 
bear  with  fortitude,  unless,  as  is  seen  in  Franklin's  in- 
teresting nanmive,  arising  out  of  reliance  on  the  ever- 
sustaining  care  of  an  Almighty  Providence. 

Parry's  First  YoYAaE,  1819-1820. 

The  Admiralty  having  determined  to  continue  the 
progress  of  discovery  in  the  Arctic  seas,  Lieut  W.  E. 
rarry,  who  had  been  second  in  command  under  Capt. 
Ross,  in  the  voyage  of  the  previous  year,  was  selected 
to  take  charge  of  a  new  expedition,  consisting  of  the 
Heel  a  and  Griper.  The  chief  object  of  this  voyage  was 
to  puraue  th?  survey  of  Lancaster  Sound,  and  decide 


86 


rROOBEgg   OF   ARCTIC   DISCOVKRY. 


on  the  probability  of  a  northwest  passage  ri  V'  »»*  Jiroc- 
tion;   railing  in  which,  Smith's   and   Jo     k'  B<''un(].-» 
were  to  be  explored,  with  the  same  purpose  itt  view. 
The  respective    officers  appointed    to  the    efaius, 
were  — 

Hecla^  375  tons : 

Lient.  and  Commander  —  W.  E.  Parry. 
Lieutenant  —  Fred.  W.  Beechey. 
■   Captain  —  E.  Sabine,  K.  A.,  Astronomer. 
Purser — W.  H.  Hoojber. 
Surgeon  —  John  Edwards. 
Assistant  Surgeon  —  Alexander  Fisher. 
Midshipmen  —  James  Clarke  Eoss,  J.  Nias,  W.  J 

Dealy,  Charlea  Palmer,  John  Bushnan. 
Greenland  Pilots  —  J.  Allison,  master;  G.  Craw- 

furd,  mate. 
44  Petty  Officers,  Seamen,  &c. 

Total  complement,  68. 

Orijper^  180  tons : 

Lieutenant  and  Commander  —  Matthew  Liddon. ''^ 
Lieutenant  —  H.  P.  Hoppner. 
Assistant  Surgeon  —  C.  J.  Beverley. 
Midshipmen  —  A.  Keid,   A.    M.    Skene,  "W.    N 

Griffiths. 
Greenland  Pilots  —  George  Fyfe,  master ;  A.  Eld 

mate.  ^^»^ 

28  Petty  Officers,  Seamen,  &o.         ^  *•  > 

Total  complement,  36.  ^ 

The  ships  were  raised  upon,  strengthened,  and  well 
found  in  stores  and  provisions  for  two  years.  On  the 
11th  of  May,  1819,  tney  .got  away  from  the  Thames, 
and  ailer  a  tair  passage  feU  in  with  a  considerable  quan- 
tity of  ice  in  the  middle  of  Davis'  Straits  about  the 
20th  of  June  ;  it  consisted  chiefly  of  fragments  of  ice- 
bergs, on  the  outskirts  of  the  glaciers  that  form  along 
the  shore.  After  a  tedious  passage  through  the  floes 
of  ice,  effected  chiefly  by  heaving  and  warping,  they 
arrived  at  Possession  Bay  on  the  morning  of  the  Slst 


1 


paart'b  Fuurr  voyaob. 


87 


of  July,  being  jnst  a  month  earlier  than  thoj  were 
here  on  the  previous  year.  As  many  as  fifty  whales 
were  seen  here  in  the  course  oi  a  few  hours.  On  land- 
ing, they  were  not  a  little  astonished  to  find  their  own 
footprints  of  the  previous  year,  still  distinctly  viHible  in 
the  snow.  During  an  excursion  of  three  or  four  miles 
into  the  interior,  a  fox,  a  raven,  several  ring-plovers 
and  snow-buntings,  were  seen,  as  also  a  bee,  from  which 
it  may  be  inferr^  that  honejr  can  be  procured  even  in 
these  wild  regions.  Vegetation  flourishes  remarkably 
well  here,  considering  the  hiHi  latitude,  for  wherever 
there  was  moisture,  tufts  ana  various  ground  plants 
grew  in  considerable  abundance. 

Proceeding  on  from  hence  into  the  Sound,  they  veri- 
fied the  opinion  which  had  previously  been  entertained 
by  many  of  the  officers,  that  M  Uroker  Jfotmtaina 
had  no  existence,  for  on  the  4th  of  August,  the  ships 
were  in  long.  86°  66'  W.,  three  degrees  to  the  ^istward 
of  where  land  had  been  laid  down  by  Koss  in  the  pre- 
vious year.  The  strait  was  named  after  Sir  John  JUar- 
row,  and  was  found  to  be  pretty  clear ;  but  on  reach- 
ing Leopold  Island,  the  ice  extended  in  a  compact  body 
to  the  north,  through  which  it  was  impossible  to  pene- 
trate. Bather  than  remain  inactive,  waiting  for  the 
dissolution  of  the  ice,  Parry  determined  to  try  what 
could  be  done  by  shaping  his  course  to  the  southward, 
through  the  magnificent  inlet  now  named  Eegent  In- 
let About  the  6th  of  August,  in  consequence  of  the 
local  attraction,  the  ordinary  compasses  became  use- 
less from  thdr  great  variation,  and  the  binnacles  were 
removed  from  the  deck  to  the  carpenter's  store-room  as 
useless  lumber,  the  azimuth  compasses  alone  remain- 
ing ;  and  these  became  so  sluggish  in  their  motions, 
that  they  required  to  be  verv  nicely  leveled,  and  fre- 
quently tapped  before  the  card  traversed.  The  local  at- 
traction was  very  great,  and  a  mass  of  iron-stone  found 
on  shore  attracted  the  magnet  powerfully.  The  ships 
proceeded  120  miles  from  the  entrance. 

On  the  8th  of  August,  in  lat.  T2°  13'  N.,  and  long. 
90°  29'  W.,  (his  extreme  point  of  view  Parry  named 


88 


PROORKBS   OF   ABCTIC    DfSCOVERT. 


* 


Cape  Kater,)  the  Hecla  came  to  a  compact  barrier  of 
ice  extending  across  the  inlet,  which  rendered  one  of 
two  alternatives  necessary,  either  to  remain  here  until 
an  opening  took  place,  or  to  return  again  to  the  nortli- 
ward.  The  latter  course  was  determined  on.  Making, 
therefore,  for  the  northern  shore  of  Barrow's  Strait,  on 
the  20th  a  narrow  channel  was  discovered  between  the 
ice  and  the  land.  On  the  22d,  proceeding  due  west, 
after  passing  several  bays  and  headlands,  they  noticed 
two  large  openings  or  passages,  the  first  of  which,  more 
than  eight  leagues  in  width,  he  named  Wellington 
Channel.  To  various  capes,  inlets,  and  groups  of  isl- 
ands passed.  Parry  assigned  the  names  of  Hotham, 
Barlow,  Comwallis,  Bowen,  By  am  Martin,  Griffith, 
Lowther,  Bathurst,  &c.  On  the  28th  a  boa«  was  sent 
on  shore  at  Byam  Martin  Island  with  Capt.  Sabine, 
Mr.  J.  0.  Ross,  and  the  surgeons,  to  make  owservations, 
and  collect  specimens  of  natural  history.  The  vegeta- 
tion was  rather  luxuriant  for  these  regions;  moss  in 
particular  grew  in  abundance  in  the  moist  valleys  and 
along  the  oanks  of  the  streams  that  flowed  from  the 
hills.  The  ruins  of  six  Esquimaux  huts  were  observed. 
Tracks  of  reindeer,  bears,  and  musk  oxen  were  noticed, 
and  the  skeletons,  skulls,^  and  horns  of  some  of  these 
animals  were  found. 

On  the  1st  of  September,  they  discovered  the  large 
and  fine  island,  to  which  Parry  has  given  the  name  of 
Melville  Island  after  the  First  Lord  of  the  Admiralty 
of  that  day.     On  the  following  day,  two  boats  with  a 

garty  of  officers  were  dispatched  to  examine  its  shores, 
ome  reindeer  and  musk  oxen  were  seen  on  landing, 
but  being  startled  by  the  sight  of  a  dog,  it  was  found 
impossible  to  get  near  them.  There  seemed  here  to  be 
a  great  quantity  of  the  animal  tribe,  for  the  tracks  of 
bears,  oxen,  ana  deer  were  numerous,  and  the  horns, 
skin,  and  skulls  were  also  found.  The  burrows  of  foxes 
and  field-mice  were  observed;  several  ptarmigan  were 
shot,  and  flocks  of  snow-bunting,  geese,  and  ducks,  were 
noticed,  probably  commencing  their  migration  to  a 
milder  climate.    Along  the  beach  there  was  an  im- 


parry's  first  voyage. 


mense  number  of  small  shrimps,  and  yarioua  kinds  of 
shells. 

On  the  4th  of  September,  Parry  had  the  satisfaction 
of  crossing  the  meridian  of  110°  W.,  in  the  latitude  of 
74°  44'  20",  by  which  the  expedition  became  entitled 
to  the  reward  of  £5000,  granted  by^an  order  in  Coun- 
cil upon  the  Act  68  Geo.  III.,  cap.  20,  entitled,  "An 
Act  for  more  effectually  discovering  the  longitude  at 
sea,  and  encouraging  attempts  to  find  a  northern  pas- 
sage between  the  Aflantic  and  Pacific  Oceans,  and  to 
approach  the  North  Pole."  This  fact  was  not  announced 
to  the  crews  until  the  following  day ;  to  celebrate  the 
event  they  gave  to  a  bold  cape  of  the  island  then  lying 
in  sight  the  name  of  Bounty  Cape ;  and  so  anxious 
were  they  now  to  press  forward,  that  they  began  to 
calculate  the  time  when  they  should  reach  the  longi- 
tude of  130°  W.,  the  second  place  specified  byjhe  order 
in  Council  for  reward.  On  the  afternoon  oPthe  6th, 
the  compactness  of  the  ice  stopped  them,  and  therefore, 
for  the  nrst  time  since  leaving  England,  the  anchor  was 
let  go,  and  that  in  110°  W.  longitude. 

A  boat  was  sent  on  shore  on  the  6th'  to  procure  turf 
or  peat  for  fuel,  and,  strangely  enough,  some  small 
pieces  of  tolerably  good  coal  were  found  in  various 
places  scattered  over  the  surface.  A  party  of  officers 
that  went  on  shore  on  the  8th  killed  several  grouse  on 
the  island,  and  a  white  hare ;  a  fox,  some  jfeld-mice, 
seveml  snow-bunting,  a  snowy  owl,  and  four  musk  oxen 
were  seen.  Ducks,  m  small  nocks,  were  seen  along  the 
shore,  as  well  as  several  glaucous  gulls  and  tern,  and  a 
solitary  seal  was  observed. 

As  the  ships  were  coasting  along  on  the  7th,  two 
herds  of  musk  oxen  were  seen  grazing,  at  the  distance 
of  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  from  the  beach  :  one 
nerd  consisted  of  nine,  and  the  other  of  fiv^  of  these 
cattle.    They  had  also  a  distant  view  of  tv  o  reindeer. 

The  average  weight  of  the  hares  here  is  about  eight 
pounds.  Mr.  Fisher,  the  surgeon,  from  whose  interest- 
m^  ^journal  I  quote,  states  that  it  Is  very  evident  that 
this  island  must  be  frequented,  if  not  constantly  inhab- 


% 


*  \ 


90 


PROGRESS   OF   ARCTIC   DISCOVERY. 


ited,  by  musk  oxen  in  great  numbers,  for  their  bones  and 
horns  are  found  scattered  about  in  all  directions,  and 
the  greatest  part  of  the  carcass  of  one  was  discovered 
on  one  occasion.  The  skulls  of  two  carnivorous  ani- 
mals, a  wolf  and  a  lynx,  were  also  picked  up  here.  A 
party  sent  to  gather  coals  brought  on  board  about  half 
a  bushel — all  they  could  obtain. 

On  the  morning  of  the  10th,  Mr.  Gleorge  Fyfe,  tiio 
master  pilot,  with  a  party  of  six  men  belonginff  to  the . 
Griper,  landed  with  a  view  of  making  an  explpringtrip 
of  some  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  into  the  interior.  They 
only  took  provisions  for  a  day  with  them.  Great  un- 
easiness was  felt  that  they  did  not  return  ;  and  when 
two  days  elapsed,  fears  began  to  be  entertained  for 
their  safety,  and  it  was  thougjit.  they  must  have  lost 
their  way. 

Messrs.  Reid,  (midshipman)  Beverly,  (assistant  sur- 
geon) aiil  "Wakeman  (clerk)  volunteered  to  go  in  search 
of  their  missing  messmates,  but  themselves  lost  their 
way  ;  guided  by  the  rockets,  fires,  and  lights  exhibited, 
th6y  returned  by  ten  at  night,  almost  exhausted  with 
cold  and  fatigue,  but  without  intelligence  of  their  friends. 
Four  relief  parties  were  therefore  organized,  and  sent 
out  on  the  morning  of  the  13th  to  prosecute  the  search, 
and  one  of  them  fell  in  with  and  brought  back  four  of 
the  wanderers,  and  another  the  remaining  three  before 
ni^tfall. 

The  feet  of  most  of  them  were  much  frost-bitten,  and 
they  were  all  wearied  and  worn  out  with  their  wander- 
ings. It  appears  they  had  all  lost  their  way  the  eve- 
ning of  the  day  they  went  out.  With  regard  to  food, 
they  were  by  no  means  badly  off,  for  they  managed  to 
kill  as  many  grouse  as  they  could  eat.  , 

They  found  fertile  valleys  and  level  plains  in  the  in- 
terior, abounding  with  grass  and  moss  ;  also  a  lake  of 
fresh  water,  about  two  miles  long  by  one  broad,  in  which 
were  several  species  of  trout.  '  They  saw  several  herds 
of  reindeer  on  the  plains,  and  two  elk ;  also  many 
hares,  b^  no  musk  ©xen.  Some  of  those,  however,  who 
bad  been  in  search  of  the  stray  party,  noticed  herds  of 
these  cattle. 


^ 


PAKRY  S   FIB8T   VOYAOrE. 


dH 


The  winter  now  began  to  set  in,  and  the  packed  ice 
was  so  thick,  that  fears  were  entertained  of  being  locked 
up  in  an  exposed  position  on  the  coast ;  it  was,  there- 
fore, thought  most  prudent  to  put  back,  and  endeavor 
to  reach  the  harbor  which  had  been  passed  some  days 
before.  The  vessels  now  got  seriously  buffeted  among 
the  floes  and  hummocks  of  ice.  The  Griper  was  forced 
aground  on  the  beach,  and  for  some  time  was  in  a  very 
critical  position.  Lieutenant  Liddon  having  been  con- 
fined to  his  cabin  by  a  rheumatic  complaint,  was  pressed 
at  this  juncture  by  Commander  Parry  to  allow  himself 
to  be  removed  to  me  Hecla,  but  he  nobly  refused,  stating 
that  he  should  be  the  last  to  leave  the  ship,  and  contin- 
ued giving  orders.  The  beach  being  sand,  the  Griper 
was  got  off  without  injjiry. 

On  the  23d  of  September  they  anchored  off  the 
mouth  of  the  harbor,  and  the  thermometer  now  fell  to 
1°.  The  crew  were  set  to  work  to  cut  a  channel  through 
the  ice  to  the  shore,  and  in  the  course  of  three  days,  a 
canal,  two  and  a  half  miles  in  length,  was  completed, 
through  which  the  vessel  was  tracked.  The  ice  was 
eight  or  nine  inches  thick.  An  extra  allowance  of  pre- 
served meat  was  served  out  to  the  men,  in  considera- 
tion of  their  hard  labor.  The  vessels  were  unrigged, 
and  every  thing  made  snug  and  secure  for  passing  the 
winter.  Captain  Parry  gave  the  name  of  the  Is  orth 
Georgian  Islands  to  this  group,  after  his  Majesty.  Xing 
George  III.,  but  this  has  since  b«rn  changed  to  the 
Parry  Islands. 

Two  reindeer  were  killed  on  the  ist  of  October,  and 
several  white  bears  were  seen.  On  the  6th  a  deer  was 
killed,  which  weighed  170  r  :nds.  Se>  en  were  seen 
on  the  lOth,  one  of  which  was  killed,  and  another  se-' 
verely  wounded.  Following  after  thig  animal,  night 
overtook  several  of  the  sportsmen,  and  the  usual  sig- 
nals of  rockets,  lights,  &c.  ^v&re  exhibited,  to  guide 
them,  back.  One,  John  Pearson,  a  marine,  had  his 
hands  so  frostbitten  that  he  was  obliged,  on  the  2d  of 
Novemborj  to  have  the  four  fingers  of  his  leit  hand  am- 
putated. A  wolf  and  four  reindeer  were  ?een  on  the 
6  iX* 


92 


PROGKESS  OF  AUCTIC   DISCOVEEY. 


14:th.  A  herd  of  fifteen  deer  were  seen  on  the  15th; 
but  those  who  saw  them  could  not  bring  down  any,  as 
their  fowling-pieces  missed  fire,  from  the  moisture 
freezing  on  the  locks.  On  the  17th  and  18th  herds  of 
eleven  and  twenty  respectively,  were  seen,  and  a  small 
one  was  shot.  A  fox  was  caught  on  the  29th,  which  is 
described  as  equally  cunning  with  his  brethren  of  the 
temperate  regions. 

To  make  the  long  winter  pass  as  cheerfully  as  possi- 
ble, pl-ays  were  acted,  a  school  established,  and  a  news- 
paper set  on  foot,  certainly  the  first  periodical  publica- 
tion that  had  ever  issued  n*om  the  Arctic  regions.  The 
title  of  this  journal,  the  editorial  duties  of  which  were 
undertaken  by  Captain  Sabine,  was  "The  "Winter 
Chronicle,  or  New  Georgia  Gazette."  The  first  num- 
ber appeared  on  the  1st  of  November. 

On  the  evening  of  the  6th  of  November  the  farce  of 
"  Miss  ill  her  Teens "  was  brought  out,  to  the  great 
amusement  of  the  ships*  companies,  and,  considering 
the  local  difiiculties  and  disadvantages  under  which  the 
performers  labored,  their  first  essay,  according  to  the 
ofiicers'  report,  did  them  infinite  credit.  Two  hours 
were  spent  very  happily  in  their  theater  on  the  quarter- 
deck, notwithstanding  the  thermometer  outside  the  ship 
stood  at  zero,  and  within  as  low  as  the  freezing  point, 
except  close  to  the  stoves,  where  it  was  a  little  higher. 
Another  play  was  performed  on  the  24:th,  and  so  on 
every  fortnight.  The  men  were  employed  during  the 
day  in  banking  up  the  ships  with  snow. 

On  the  23d  of  December,  the  officers  performed  "  The 
Mayor  of  Garrett,"  which  was  followed  by  an  after- 
piece, written  by  Captain  Parry,  entitled  the  "  North- 
West  Passage,  or  the  Voyage  Finished."  The  sun  hav- 
ing long  tiince  departed,  the  twilight  at  noon  was  so 
clear  that  books  in  the  smallest  print  could  be  distinctly 
read. 

On  the  6th  of  January,  the  farce  of  "  Bon  Ton"  v/aa 
performed,  with  the  thermometer  at  27°  below  zero. — 
The  cold  became  more  and  more  intense.  On  the  12th 
it  was  51°  bel(  w  zc  -o,  in  the  open  air ;  brandy  froze  to 


paeby's  first  voyage. 


98 


i 


the  consistency  of  honey;  when  tasted  in  this  state  it 
left  a  smarting  on  the  tongue.  The  greatest  cold  expe- 
rienced was  on  the  14th  of  January,  when  the  ther- 
mometer fell  to  52°  below  zero.  On  the  3d  of  Febru- 
ary, the  sun  was  first  visible  above  the  horizon,  after 
eighty-four  days'  abtence.  It  was  seen  from  the  main- 
top of  the  ships,  a  height  of  about  fifty-one  feet  above 
the  sea. 

On  the  forenoon  of  the  24th  a  fire  broke  out  at  the 
storehouse,  which  was  used  as  an  observatory.  All 
hands  proceeded  to  the  spot  to  endeavor  to  subdue  the 
flames,  but  having  only  snow  to  throw  on  it,  and  the 
mats  with  which  tno  interior  was  lined  beingvery  dry^ 
it  was  found  impossible  to  extinguish  it.  The  snow, 
however,  covered  the  astronomical  instruments  and  se- 
cured tnem  from  the  fire,  and  when  the  roof  had  been 
pulled  down  the  fire  had  burned  itself  out.  Consider-  _ 
able  as  the  fire  was,  its  influence  or  heat  extended  but" 
a  very  short  distance,  for  several  of  th||^  oflficers  and 
men  were  trost^bitten,  and  confined  from  their  efibrts 
for  several  weeks.  John  Smith,  of  the  Artillery,  vrho 
was  Captain  Sabine's  servant,  and  who,  together  with 
Sergeant  Martin,  happened  to  be  in  the  house  at  the 
time  the  fire  broke  out,  suflfered  much  more  severely. 
In  their  anxiety  to  save  the  d  ipping  needle,  which  was 
standing  close  to  the  stove,  and  of  which  they  knew 
the  value,  they  immediatclv  ran  out  with  it;  ana  Smith 
not  having  time  to  put  on  his  gloves,  had  his  fingers  in 
half  an  hour  so  benumbed,  and  the  animation  so  com- 
pletely  suspended,  that  on  his  being  taken  on  board 
L^  Mr.  Edwards,  and  having  his  hands  plunged  into 
a  basin  of  cold  water,  the  surface  of  the  water  was  im- 
mediatclv frozen  by  the  intense  cold  thus  suddenly 
communicated  to  it;  and  notwithstanding  the  most  hu- 
mane and  unremitting  attention  paid  him  by  the  med- 
ical gentlemen,  it  was  found  nocessary,  some  time  after, 
to  resort  to  the  amputation  of  a  part  of  four  fingers 
"^on  one  hand,  and  three  on  the  other. 

Parry  adds,  "  the  appearance  which  our  faces  prer 
tented  at  the  fire  was  a  curious  one;  almost  every  nose 


f 


H 


PE0GRES8   OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERY. 


and  cheek  having  become  quite  white  with  frost  bites, 
in  five  minutes  alter  being  exposed  to  the  weather,  so 
that  it  was  deemed  necessarv  for  the  medical  gentle- 
men, together  with  some  others  appointed  to  assist 
them,  to  go  constantly  round  while  the  men  were  woi-k 
ing  at  the  fire,  and  to  rub  with  snow  the  parts  affected, 
in  order  to  restore  animation." 

The  weather  got  considerably  milder  in  March;  on 
the  6th  the  thermometer  got  up  to  zero  for  the  first 
time  since  the  17th  of  December.     The  observatory 
^**lifeou8e  on  shore  was  now  rebuilt. 

The  vapor,  which  had  been  in  a  solid  state  on  the 
^ip's  sides,  now  thawed  below,  and  the  crew,  scraping 
off  the  coating  of  ice,  removed  on  the  8th  of  March, 
above  a  hundred  bucketsfull  each,  coritaining  from  five 
to  six  gallons,  which  had  accumulated  in  less  than  a 
^ month,  occasioned  principally  from  the  men- 8  breath, 
and  the  steam  of  victuals  at  meals. 

The  scur^  now  broke  out  among  the  crew,  and 

frompt  measures  were  taken  to  remedy  it.    Captain 
*arry  took  great  pains  to  raise  mustard  and  cress  in 
his  cabin  for  the  men's  use. 

On  the  30th  of  April,  the  thermoftieter  stood  at  the 
freezing  point,  which  it  had  not  done  since  the  12th  of 
September  last.  On  the  1st  of  May,  the  sun  was  seen 
at  midnight  for  the  first  time  that  season. 

A  survey  was  now  taken  of  the  provisions,  fuel,  and 
stores;  much  of  the  lemon  juice  was  found  destroyed 
from  the  bursting  in  the  bottles  by  the  frost.  Having 
been  only  victrialed  for  two  years,  and  half  that  period 
having  expired,  Captain  Parry,  as  a  matter  of  prudence 
reduced  aU  hands  to  two-thirds  allowance  of  all  sorts  of 
provisions,  except  meat  and  sugar. 

The  crew  Wfo  new  set  to  work  in  cutting  away  the 
ice  round  the  siiips :  the  average  thickness  was  found 
to  be  seven  feet  Manyk  of  tlie  men  who  had  been  out 
on  excursions  began  to  suffer  much  from  snow  blinds 
ness.  The  sensation  when  first  experienced,  is  de-* 
scribed  as  like  that  felt  when  dust  or  sand  gets  into, 
the  eyes.    The^  were,  however,  cured  in  the  course  of 


pakkt's  first  voyaoe. 


05 


two  or  three  days  by  keeping  the  eyes  covered,  and 
bathing  them  occasionally  wiUi  sugar  of  lead,  or  some 
other  cooling  lotion. 

To  prevent  the  recurrence  of  the  complaint,  thei<'«[ien 
were  oi*dered  to  wear  a  piece  of  crape  or  some  substi- 
tute for  it  over  the  eyes. 

The  channel  round  the  ships  was  completed  by  the 
17th  of  May,  and  they  rose  nearly  two  feet,  having 
been  kept  down  by  the  pressure  of  the  ice  round  them, 
although  li^htenea  during  the  winter  by  the  consump- 
tion of  fooa  end  fuel.  On  the  24:th,  they  were  aston- 
ished by  two  showers  of  rain,  a  most  extraordinary 
phenomenon  in  these  reffions.  Symptoms  of  scurvy 
again  appeared  among  uie  crew ;  one  of  the  seamen 
who  had  been  recently  cured,  having  imprudently  been 
in  the  habit  of  eating  the  fat  skimmings,  or  ^^  slush,"  in 
which  salt  meat  had  oeen  boiled,  and  which  was  served 
out  for  their  lamps.  As  the  hills  in  mrny  places  now  be- 
came exposed  and  vegetation  commenceag|wo  or  three 
pieces  of  ground  were  dug  up  and  sown  ^th  seeds  of 
radishes,  onions,  and  other  vegetables.  Captain  Parry 
determined  before  leaving  to  make  an  excursion  across 
the  island  for  the  |)urpoBe  of  examining  its  size,  bounds 
aries,  productions,  &c.  Accordingly  on  the  Ist  of  June, 
an  expedition  was  organized,  consisting  of  the  com- 
mander, Captain  Sabine,  Mr.  Fisher,  the  assistant^sur- 
keon,  Mr.  J  ohn  Nias,  midshipman  of  the  Hecla,  and 
Mr.  Reid,  midshipman  of  the  Griper,  with  two  ser 
geants,  and  five  seamen  and  marines.  Three  weeks 
provisions  were  taken,  which,  together  with  two. tents, 
wood  for  fuel,  and  other  articles,  weighing  in  all  about 
800  lbs.,  was  drawn  on  a  cart  prepared  for  the  purpose 
by  the  men. 

Each  of  the  officers  carried  a  knapsack  with  his  own 
private  baggage,  weighing  from  18  to  24  lbs.,  also  his 
gwn  and  ammunition.  The  party  started  in  high  glee, 
under  three  hearty  cheers  from  their  comrades,  sixteen 
of  whom  accompanied  them  for  five  miles,  carrying 
their  knapsacks  and  drawing  the  cart  for  them. 

They  traveled  by  night,  taking  icjt  by  day,  as  it  woi 


it 


PKOORESS   OB'   ARCTIC    DISCOVKRY. 


found  to  be  warmer  for  sleep,  and  they  bad  only  a  cov 
ering  of  a  single  blanket  each,  beside  the  clotlies  tbey 
had  on. 

On  the  2d,  they  came  to  a  small  lake,  about  half  a 
mile  long,  and  met  with  eider-ducks  and  ptarmigan  ; 
seven  of  the  latter  were  shot.  From  the  top  of  a  range 
of  hills  at  which  they  now  arrived,  they  could  see  the 
masts  of  the  ships  in  Winter  Harbor  with  the  naked 
eye,  at  about  ten  or  eleven  miles  distant.  A  vast  plain 
was  also  seen  extending  to  the  northward  and  west- 
ward. 

The  party  breakfasted  on  biscuit  and  a  pint  of  gruel 
each,  made  of  salep  powder,  which  was  round  to  be  a 
very  palatable  diet.    Beindeer  with  their  fawns  were 
'  met  with. 

They  derived  great  assistance  in  dragging  their  cart 
by  rigging  upon  it  one  of  the  tent-blankets  as  a  sail,  a 
truly  nautical  contrivance,  and  the  wind  tavoring  them, 
they  made^eat  progress  in  this  way.  Captain  Sabine 
being  takefill  with  a  bowel  complaint,  had  to  be  con- 
veyed on  this  novel  sail  carriage.  They,  however,  had 
some  ugly  ravines  to  pass,  the  crossings  of  which  were 
-^  very  tedious  and  troublesome.  On  the  7th  the  party 
came  to  a  large  bay,  which  was  named  after  their  ships, 
Hecla  and  Griper  feay.  The  blue  ice  was  cut  through 
by  hard  work  with  boarding  pikes,  the  only  instruments 
they  had,  and  after  digging  fourteen  and  a  half  feet, 
the  water  rushed  up ;  it  was  not  very  salt,  but  sufficient 
to  satisfy  them  that  it  was  the  ocean.  An  island  seen 
in  the  distance  was  named  after  Captain  Sabine  ;  some 
of  the  various  points  and  capes  were  also  named  after 
others  of  the  party.  Although  this  «hore  was  found 
blocked  up  with  such  heavy  ice,  there  appear  to  be  times 
when  there  is  open  water  here,  for  a  piece  of  fir  wood 
seven  and  a  half  feet  long,  and  about  the  thickness  of 
a  man's  arm,  was  found  about  eighty  yards  inland  from 
the  hummocks  of  the  beach,  and  about  thirty  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea.  Before  leaving  the  shore,  a  monu- 
ment of  stones,  twelve  feet  high,  was  erected,  in  which 
were  deposited,  in  a  tin  cylinder,  an  account  of  their 


PAKRY'»   FIB8T   VOYAOS. 


97 


? 


i>  ceedings,  a  few  coins,  and  several  naval  buttons, 
he  expeaition  now  turned  back,  shaping  its  course  in 
a  more  westerly  direction,  toward  some  high  blue  hills, 
which  had  long  been  in  sight.  On  many  days  se^«ral 
ptarmigans  were  shot.  The  horns  and  tracks  of  deer 
were  very  numerous. 

On  the  11th  they  came  in  sight  of  a  deep  gulf,  to 
which  Lieutenant  Liddon's  name  was  given ;  tne  two 
capes  at  its  entrance  being  called  after  Beechey  and 
Hoppner.  In  the  center  was  an  island  about  three-quar- 
ters of  a  mile  in  length,  and  rising  abruptly  to  the 
height  of  TOO  feet.  The  shores  of  the  gulf  were  very 
rugged  and  precipitant,  and  in  descending  a  steep  hill, 
the  axle-tree  of  their  cart  broke,  and  they  had  to  leave 
it  behind,  taking  the  body  with  them,  however,  for  fuel. 
The  wheels,  which  were  left  on  the  spot,  may  astonish 
some  future  adventurer  who  discovers  them.  The  stores, 
&c.,  were  divided  among  the  officers  and  men. 

Making  their  way  on  the  ice  in  the  gulf,Jb^e  islard  in 
the  center  was  explored,  and  named  after  Mr.  Hoopor, 
the  purser  of  the  Hecla.  It  was  found  to  be  of  sand- 
stone, and  very  barren,  rising  perpendicularly  from  the 
west  side.  Four  fat  geese  were  killed  here,  and  a  gi*eat 
many  animals  were  seen  around  the  gulf ;  some  atten- 
tion being  paid  to  examining  its  shores,  &c.,  a  fine  open 
valley  was  discovered,  and  the  tracks  of  oxen  and 
deer  were  very  numerous  ;  the  pasturage  appeared  to 
be  excellent. 

On  the  13th,  a  few  ptarmigan  and  golden  plover  were 
killed.  "No  less  than  thirteen  deer  in  one  h^  were 
seen,  and  a  musk  ox  for  the  first  time  in  this  s^son. 

The  remains  of  six  Esquimaux  huts  were  discovered 
about  300  yards  from  the  beach.  Vegetation  now  be- 
gan to  flourish,  the  sorrel  was  found  far  advarced,  and 
a  species  of  saxifrage  was  met  with  in  blossom.  They 
reached  the  ships  on  the  evening  of  the  15th,  after  a 
journey  of  about  180  miles. 

The  ships'  crews,  during  their  absence,  had  been  occu- 
pied in  getting  ballast  in  and  re-stowing  the  hold. 

Shooting  parties  were  now  sent  out  in  various  direo- 


'm 


PKOGKESB   OF   AliOTIC   DlSCWVfiRY. 


tions  to  procure  game.  Dr.  Fisher  gives  an  interesting, 
account  of  his  ten  days'  excursion  with  a  couple  of  men. 
The  deer  were  not  so  nunfieroua  as  they  expected  to  find 
them.  About  thirty  were  seen,  of  which  his  party 
killed  but  two,  which  were  very  lean,  weighing  only, 
when  skinned  and  cleaned,  60  to  60  lbs.  .A  couple  of 
wolves  were  seen,  and  some  foxes,  with  a  ^reat  many 
hares,  lour  of  which  were  killed,  weighing  Irom  7  to  8 
lbs.  The  aquatic  birds  seen  were  —  brent  geese,  king 
ducks,  long-tailed  ducks,  and  arctic  and  glaucous  gulls. 
The  land  birds  were  ptarmigans,  ploveri^  sandenings 
and  snow  buntings.  The  geese  were  pretty  numerous 
for  the  first  few  days,  bi.  got  wild  ana  wary  on  being 
disturbed,  keeping  in  t  he  middle  of  lakes  out  of  gun- 
shot. /Vbout  a  dozen  were,  however,  killed,  and  fifteen 
ptarmigans.  These  birds  are  represented  to  be  so  stm- 
pid,  that  all  seen  may  be  shot.  Dr.  Fisher  was  sur- 
prised on  his  return  on  the  29th  of  June,  after  hie  ten 
days'  absence,  to  find  how  much  vegetation  had  ad- 
vanced ;  the  land  being  now  completely  clear  of  snow, 
was  covered  with  the  purple-colored  saxifrage  in  blos- 
som, with  mosses,  and  with  sorrel,  and  the  grass  was 
two  to  three  inches  long.  The  men  were  sent  out  twice 
a  week  to  collect  the  sorrel,  and  in  a  few  minutes  enough 
could  be  procured  to  make  a  salad  for  dinner.  After 
bei'ig  mixefl  with  vinegar  it  was  regularly  served  out 
to  tlie  men.  The  English  garden  seeds  that  had  been 
sown  got  on  but  slowly,  and  did  not  yield  any  produce 
in  tim'   to  be  used.  — 

On  |he  30th  of  June  Wm.  Scott,  a  boatswain's  mate, 
who  Had  been  afliicted  with  scurvy,  diarrhoea,  <fec., 
died,  and  was  buried  on  the  2d  of  July  —  a  slab  ot 
sandstone  bearing  an  inscription  carved  by  Dr.  Fisher, 
being  erected  over  his  grave. 

From  observations  made  on  the  tide  during  two 
months,  it  appeal's  that  the  greatest  rise  and  fall  here 
is  four  feet  four  inches.  A  large  pile  of  stones  was 
erected  on  the  14th  of  July,  upon  the  most  conspicuous 
hill,  containing  the  usual  notices,  coins,  &c.,  and  on  a 
large  stone  an  inscription  was  left,  notifying  the  winte.r 
ing  of  the  ships  here.  v  ' 


PARRY  8   FIRST   VOYAGE. 


9») 


On  the  Ist  of  Augnst,  the  ships,  which  had  been  pre- 
viously warped  out,  got  clear  ot  the  harbor,  and  found 
ft  channel,  both  eastward  and  westward,  clear  of  ice, 
about  three  or  four  miles  in  breadth  along  the  land. 

On  the  6th  they  landed  on  the  island,  and  in  the 
course  of  the  night  killed  fourteen  hares  and  a  number 
of  glaucous  gulls,  which  were  found  with  their  young 
on  the  top  ol  a  precipitous,  insulated  rock 

On  the  9th  the  voyagers  had  an  opportunity  of  ob- 
serving an  instance  of  the  violent  pressure  that  takes 
place  occasionally  by  the  collision  of  heavy  ice.  "  Two 
pieces,"  says  Dr.  Fisher,  "that  ^appened  to  come  in 


ibly  against  one  an- 
fo'i;y  two  feet  thick, 
1  and  breadth, -was 
other  piece  of  ice. 


contact  close  to  us,  pressed  so 
other  that  one  of  them,  altLu 
and  at  least  three  times  that  in  '. 
forced  up  on  its  edge  on  the  top 

But  even  this  is  nothing  when  compared  with  the  pres- 
sure that  must  have  existed  to  produce  the  ^ects  that 
we  see  along  the  shore,  for  not  only  heaps  of  earth  and 
stones  several  tons  weight  are  forced  up,  but  hummocks 
of  ice,  from  fifty  to  sixty  feet  thick,  are  piled  up  on  the 
beach.  It  is  unnecessary  to  remark  that  a  ship,  although 
fortified  as  well  as  wood  and  iron  could  make  her,  would 
have  but  little  chance  of  withstanding  such  over- 
whelming force." 

This  day  a  musk-ox  was  shot,  which  weighed  more 
than  700  Ids.;  the  carcass,  when  skinned  and  cleaned, 
yielding  421  lbs.  of  meat.  The  flesh  did  not  taste  so 
very  strong  of  musk  as  had  been  represented. 

The  ships  made  but  slow  progress,  being  still  thickly 
beset  with  floes  of  ice,  40  or  50  feet  thick,  and  had  t<? 
make  fast  for  security  to  hummocks  of  ice  on  the  beach. 

On  the  15th  and  16th  they  were  oflf  the  southwest 
point  of  the  island,  but  a  survey  of  the  locality  from 
the  precipitous  cliff  of  Cape  Dundas,  presented  the 
same  interminable  barrier  of  ice,  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach.  A  bold  high  coast  was  sighted  to  the  southwest, 
to  which  the  name  of  Bank's  Land  was  given. 

Captain  Parry  states  that  on  the  23d  the  ships  re- 
roived  by  far  the  heaviest  shocks  they  had  experienced 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


t= 


1.0 


I.I 


«i  Ki   12.2 

1*^  mil  2.0 
L8 


lU 


11.25  iU   mil  1.6 


V] 


72 


v: 


•% 


M 


'W 


V 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


lOO 


PHOGRE88  OP  ARCTtlO  DISCOVERY. 


durine  the  voyage,  and  performed  six  miles  of  the  most 
difficult  navisation  he  had  ever  known  among  ice. 

Two  musk  Dulls  were  shot  on  the  24th  by  parties  who 
landed,  out  of  a  herd  of  seven  which  were  seen.  They 
were  lighter  than  the  first  one  shot  —  weighing  only 
about  360  lbs.  From  the  number  of  skulls  and  skele- 
tons of  these  animals  met  with,  and  their  .capabiuties 
of  enduring  the  rigor  of  the  climate,  it  seems  probable 
that  they  do  not  migrate  southward,  but  winter  ot)  this 
idand. 

Attempts  were  still  made  to  work  to  the  eastward, 
but  on  the  25th,  from  want  of  wind,  and  the  closeness 
of  the  ice,  the  ships  were  obliged  to  make  fast  again, 
without  having  gamed  above  a  mile  after  several  hours* 
labor.  A  firesh  breeze  springing  up  on  the  26th  opened 
a  passage  along  shore,  and  the  ships  made  sail  to  the 
eastwara,  and  in  the  evening  were  off  their  old  quarters 
in  Wintel*  Harbor.  On  the  following  evening,  after  a 
fine  run,  they  were  off  the  east  end  of  MelvilJb  Islind. 
Lieut.  Parry,  this  day,  announced  to  the  officers  and 
crew  that  after  due  consideration  and  consultation,  it 
had  been  found  useless  to  prosecute  their  researches 
farther  westward,  and  therefore  endeavors  would  be 
made  in  a  more  southerly  direction,  failing  in  which, 
the  expedition  would  return  to  England.  Kegent  Inlet 
and  the  southern  shores  generally,  were  found  so  blocked 
up  with  ice,  that  the  return  to  England  was  on  the  30th 
ot  August  publicly  announced.  This  day,  Navy  Board 
and  Admiralty  Inlets  were  passed,  and  on  the  let  of 
September  the  vessels  got  clear  of  Harrow's  Strait,  and 
Teachud  Baffin's  Bay  on  the  5th.  They  fell  in  with  a 
whaler  belonging  to  Hull,  from  whom  th6y  learned  t^« 
news  of  the  death  of  George  the  Third  and  the  Duke 
of  Kent,  and  that  eleven  vessels  having  been  lost  in  the 
ice  last  year,  fears  were  entertained  for  their  safety. 
The  Friendship,  another  Hull  whaler,  informed  them 
that  in  company  with  the  Truelove,  she  had  looked  into 
Smith's  Sound  that  summer.  The  Alexander,  of  Aber- 
deen, one  of  the  ships  employed  on  the  former  voyage 
of  discovery  to  these  seas,  had  also  efatered  Lancastc/ 


PARRY'S  SECOND  TOTAOB. 


101 


Souud.  After  tonchioff  at  Clyde's  Biyer,  where  they 
met  a  good-natured  tribe  of  Esquimaux,  the  ships  made 
the  best  of  their  way  across  th<^  Atlantic,  and  after  a 
somewhat  boisterous  passage,  Commodore  rarry  landed 
at  Peterhead  on  the  30th  of  October,  and,  accompanied 
by  Capt  Sabine  and  Mr.  Hooper,  potted  to  London. 


Parry's  Second  Voyage,  1821 — 1828. 

The  experience  which  Capt.  Parry  had  formed  in  his 
previous  voyage,  led  him  to  entertain  the  opinion  that 
a  communication  might  be  found  between  Begent  Inlet 
and  Koe's  Welcome,  or  through  Eepulse  Bay,  and  thence 
to  the  northwestern  shores.    The  following  are  his  re> 
marks  : — ^^  On  an  inspection  of  the  charts  I  think  it 
will  also  appear  probable  that'  a  communication  will 
one  day  be  found  to  exist  between  this  inlet  (Prince 
liegent's)  and  Hudson's  Bav,  either  through  the  broad 
and  unexplored  channel  called  Sir  Thomas  Eoe's  Wel- 
oeme,  or  through  Eepulse  Bay,  which  has  not  yet  been 
satisfactorily  examined.    It  is  also  probable  that  a  chan- 
nel will  be  tbund  to  exist  between  the  western  land  and 
the  northern  coast  of  America."     Again,  in  another 
place,  he  says: — "Of  the  existence  of  a  northwest 
passage  to  the  Pacific  it  is  now  scarcely  possible  to 
doubt,  and  from  the  succesr  which  attended  our  efforts 
in  1819,  after  passing  through  Sir  James  Lancaster's 
Sound,  we  were  not  unreasonable  in  anticipating  its 
complete  accomplishment    But  the  season  in  which  it 
is  practicable  to  navigate  the  Polar  JBeas  does  not  exceed 
seven  weekly    From  all  that  we  observed  it  seems  desir- 
able that  ships  endeavoring  to  reach  the  Pacific  Ocean 
by  this  route  should  keep  if  »ossible  on  the  coast  of 
America,  and  the  lower  in  lantude  that  coast  may  be 
found,  the  more  favorable  will  it  prove  for  the  purpose ; 
hence  Cumberland  Strait,  Sir  Thomas  Eoe's  Welcome, 
and  Eepulse  Bay  appear  to  be  the  points  most  worthy 
of  attention.    I  cannot,  therefore,  but  consider  that  any 
expedition  equipped  by  Great  Britain  with  this  view 


102 


PROOSBM  OF  ABCmO  DI800TBRT. 


ought  to  employ  its  best  energies  in  attempting  to  pene- 
trate from  the  eastern  coast  of  America  along  its  north- 
wn  shore.  In  consequence  of  the  partial  success  which 
has  hitherto  attend^  our  attempts,  the  whalers  have 
already  extended  tibeir  views,  and  a  new  field  has  been 
opened  for  one  of  the  most  IncratiTe  branches  oi  our 
commerce,  and  what  is  scarcely  of  less  importance,  one 
of  the  most  valuable  nurseries  for  seamen  which  Great 
Britain  possesses.*^ 

Pleased  with  his  former  zeal  and  enterprise,  and  in 
order  to  give  him  im  opportunity  of  testing  the  truth 
of  his  observations,  a  few  montiis  after  he  returned  home, 
the  Admiralty  gave  Parry  tiie  command  of  another  ex- 
pedition,  with  instructions  to  proceed  to  Hudson's  Strait, 
and  penetrate  to  the  westward,  until  in  Bepulse  Bay, 
or  on  some  other  part  of  the  shores  of  Hudson's  Bay  to 
the  north  of  Wa^r  River,  he  should  reach  the  western 
coast  of  the  contment.  Failing  in  these  quarters,  he 
was.  to  keep  along  the  coast,  careAilly  examining  every 
bend  or  imet,  wmch  shouM  appear  likely  to  anbrd  a 
practicable  passage  to  the  westward.  • 

^e  vessels  commissioned,  with  their  officers  and 
crews,  were  the  following.  Several  of  the  officers  of  the 
former  expedition  were  promoted,  and  those  who  had 
been  on  the  last  vpyage  with  Parry  I  have  marked  with 
tlh.  asterisk  :— 

,       Fwry,   . 

Commander — ^*V.E.  Parry. 

Chaplain  and  Astronomer — Bev.  Geo.  Fisher,  (was 
in  the  Dorothea,  under  Capt.  Buchan,  m  1818.) 

Lieutenants  — ^*J.  Nias  and  *A.  Beid. 

Surgeon  — ^*J.  Edwai^s.        « 

Purser  — *W.  H.  HoSper. 

Assistant-Surgeon- — Z.^\^     %^ 

Midshipmen — ^J.  C.  Boss,  j'.  Bushnan,  J.  Hender- 
son, F.  R  M.  Orozier. 


^li ,  ^ijjt 


PVwn^^  Firat  Voyage,  vol  ii,  p^  940L 


ia?5 


^ 


paaby's  seocnd  yjoyaqk. 


19& 


Greenland  Pilots  — *  J.  Allison,  master ;  G.  Orawftudi . 

mate. 
47  Petty  Officers,  Seamen,  &c. 

Total  complement,  60. 

H&ola. 

Commander — G.  F.  I>on. 
Lieutenants — ^^H.  P.  Hoppner  and  *0.  Palmer. 
Surgeon — *  A.  Fisher. 
Purser  —  J.  Germain. 
•  Assistant-Surgeon  —  A.  M'Laren. 
Midshipmen  — *W.  N.  Griffiths,  J.  Sherer,  0.  Bich-. 

ards,  £.  J.  Bird. 
Greenland  Pilots  — *G.  Fife,  master;  *A.  Elder,  mate. 
46  Petty  Officers,  seamen,  <&c. 

Total  complement,  58. 

Lieutenant  Lyon,  the  second  in  command,  had  ob 
tained  some  reputation  from  his  travels  in  Tripoli, 
Mourzoidc,  and  other  parts  of  Northern  Africa,  and  was 
raised  to  the  rank  of  Commander,  on  his  appointment 
to  the  Heda,  and  received  his  promotion  as  Captain, 
when  the  expedition  returned.' 

The  ships  were  accompanied  as  far  as  the  ice  by 
the  Kautilns  tranttport,  freighted  with  provisions  and 
stores,  which  were  to  be  transhipped  as  soon  as  room 
was  found  for  them. 

The  yesselfl  got  away  from  the  little  Kore  early  on 
the  8th  of  May,  18^1,  but  meeting  with  strong  gales 
off  the  Greenlimd  coast,  and  a  boisterous  passage,  did 
not  fall  in  with  the  ice  until  the  middle  of  June. 

On  the  ITth  of  June,  in  a  heavy  gale  from  the  south* 
ward,  the  sea  stove  ai^d  carrkd  away  one  of  the  quar- 
ter boats  of  the  Hecla.  On  tne  following  day,  in  lat. 
60°  63'  N.,  loB^.  61°  39'  W.,  they  made  the  pack  or 
main  body  of  ice,  having  many  large  bergs  in  and 
near  it.  On  Ihe  .19th,  I&olution  Island,  at  the  en- 
trance of  Hudson's  Strait,  was  seen  distant  sixty-fpur 
miles.      Oapt.  Lyon  states,  that  during  one  of   the 


m 


*-• 


104 


FBOOBIdSS  09   ABCmO  DI800TEBY. 


watches,  a  large  fragment  was  observed  to  fall  front 
an  iceberg  near  the  Hecla,  which  threw  up  the  watei 
to  a  great  height,  sending  forth  at  the  same  time  a 
noise  like  the  report  of  a  ^eat  gun.  From  this  pe- 
riod to  the  1st  of  July,  the  ships  were  occupied  in 
clearing  the  Kautilus  of  her  stores,  preparatory  to 

-  her  return  home,  occasionally  made  fast  to  a  berg,  or 
driven  out  to  sea  by  gales.  On  the  2d,  after  running 
through  heavy  ice,  they  again  made  Resolution  Island, 
and  shaping  their  course  for  the  Strait,  were  soon  in- 
troducea  to  the  company  of  some  unusually  large  ice- 
bergs. The  altitude  of  one  was  258  feet  above  the 
Burtace  of  the  sea ;  its  total  height,  therefore,  allowing 
one-seventh  only  to  be  visible,  must  have  been  about 
1806  feet  I  This  however,  is  supposing  the  base  un 
der  water  not  to  spread  beyond  the  mass  above  water 
The  vessels  had  scarcely  drifted  past  this  floating 
mountain,  when  the  eddy  tide  carried  them  with  great 
rapidity  among  a  cluster  of  eleven  bergs  of  huge 
size,  and  having  a  b^utifiil  diversity  of  form.  The 
largest  of  these  was  210  feet  above  the  water.  The 
floe  ice  was  running  wildly  at  the  rate  of  three  miles 
an  hour,  swee])ing  the  vessels  past  the  bergs,  against 
any  one  of  which,  they  might  have  received  incalcu- 
lable injury.     An  endeavor  was  made  to  make  the , 

^hipB  fast  to  one  of  them,  (for  all  of  them  were  aground,) 
in  order  to  ride  out  the  tide,  but  it  proved  unsuccess-  % 
ful,  and  the  Fury  had  much  difficulty  in  sending  a 
boat  for  some  men  who  were  on  a  small  hers,  making 
holes  for  her  ice  anchors.  They  were  therefore  swept 
past  and  soon  beset.  Fifty-four  icebergs  were  counted 
from  the  mast-head.  '  <? 

On  the  3d,  they  made  some  progress  through  very 
heavy  floes ;  but  on  theMde  turning,  the  loose  ice  flow 
together  with  such  rapioity  and  noise,  that  there  was 
barely  time  to  secure  the  ships  in  a  natural  dock,  be- 
fore the  two  streams  met,  and  even  then  they  received 
some  heavy  shocks.  Water  was  procured  for  use 
from  the  pools  in  the  floe  to  which  the  ships  were 
made  fast ;  aifd  this  being  the  first  time  of  doing  so, 


Fabry's  skoond  totaob. 


106 


afiforded  great  amiiBemeiit  to  the  noyices,  -who,  even 
when  it  was  their  period  of  rest,  preferred  pelting 
each  other  with  snow-balls,  to  goins  to  bed.  Buffet 
ing  with  eddies,  strong  currents,  and  dangerous  bergs, 
they  were  kept  in  a  state  of  anxiety  and  danger,  K>r 
a  week  or  ten  days.  On  one  occasion,  with  the  pros- 
pect of  being  driven  on  shore,  the  pressure  they  ex- 
perienced was  so  great,  that  five  hawsers,  six  inches 
thick,  were  carriea  away,  and  the  best  bower  anchor 
of  the  Hecla  was  wrenched  from  the  bows,  and  broke 
off  at  the  head  of  the  shank,  with  as  much  ease  as  if, 
instead  of  weighing  upward  of  a  ton,  it  had  been  of 
crockery  ware.  For  a  week  they  were  emi.ayed  by 
the  ice,  and  during  this  period  they  saw  thrt.<)  strange 
ships,  also  beset,  under  Kesolution  Island,  which  they 
contrived  to  join  on  the  16th  of  July,  making  fast  to 
a  floe  near  them.  They  proved  to  be  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company's  traders,  Prince  of  Wales,  and  Eddystone, 
with  the  Lord  "Wellington,  chartered  to  convey  160 
natives  of  Holland,  who  were  proceeding  to  settle  on 
Lord  Selkirk's  estate,  at  the  Red  Eiver.  *^  While 
nearing  these  vessels,  (says  Lyon,)  we  observed  the 
settlors  waltzing  on  deck,  for  above  two  hours,  the 
men  in  old-fashioned  gray  jackets,  and  the  women 
wearing  long-eared  mob  caps,  like  those  used  by  the 
Swiss  peasants.  As  we  were  surrounded  by  ice,  and 
t]^  thermometer  was  at  the  freezing  point,  it  may  be 
supposed  that  this  ball,  al  vero  fresco^  afforded  us 
much  amusement."  The  Hudson's  Bay  ships  had 
left  England  twenty  days  after  the  expedition. 

The  emigrant  ship  had  been  hampered  nineteen 
days  among  the  ice  before  she  joined  the  others ; 
and  as  this  Dgvigation  was  new  to  her  captain  and  crew, 
they  almost  despaired  of  ever  getting  to  their  jour- 
ney's end,  so  varied  and  constant  had  been  their  im- 
pediments. The  Dutchmen  had,  however,  behaved 
very  philosophically  during  this  period,  and  seemed 
determined  on  being  merry,  in  spite  of  the  weather 
and  the  dangers.  Several  marriages  had  taken  place^ 
the  surgeon,  who  was  accompanying  them  to  the  col- 


.«* 


IM 


FB00BE8S  OF  ASCTIO  DISCOVERY. 


oay,  officiating  as  clergyman,)  alid  many  more  were 
in  agitation ;  each  happy  couple  always  deferring  the 
ceremony  until  a  fine  day  allowed  of  an  erening  ball, 
which  was  only  terminated  by  a  fresh  breeze,  or  a  fall 
of  snow.^  On  the  17th,  the  ships  were  separated  by 
the  ice,  and  they  saw  no  more  of  their  visitors.  On 
the  21st,  they  were  only  off  the  Lower  Savage  Islands. 
In  the  evening  they  saw  a  very  large  bear  lying  on  a 
piece  of  ice,  and  two  boats  were  instantly  sent  off  in 
chase.  They  approached  very  close  before  he  took 
to  the  water,  when  he  swam  rapidly,  and  made  long 
springs,  turning  boldly  to  face  nis  pursuers.  It  was 
with  difficulty  ne  was  captured.  As  these  animals, 
although  very  fat  and  bulky,  sink  the  instant  they  die, 
he  was  lashed  to  a  boat,  and  brought  alongside  the 
ship.  On  hoisting  him  in,  they  were  astonished  to 
fina  that  his  weight  exceeded  sixteen  hundred  pounds, 
being  one  of  the  largest  over  killed.  Two  instances, 
only,  of  larger  bears  being  shot  are  recorded,  and 
these  were  by  Barentz's  crew,  in  his  third  voyage,  at 
Cherie  Island,  to  which  they  gave  the  name  of  jBear 
Island.  The  two  bears  killed  then,  measured  twelve 
and  thirteen  feet,  while  this  one  only  measured  eight 
feet  eight  inches,  from  the  snout  to  the  insertion  of  the 
.tail.  The  seamen  ate  the  flesh  without  experiencing 
any  of  those  baneful  effects  which  old  navigators  at- 
tribute to  it,  and  which  are  stated  to  have  made  thr^ 
of  Barentz's  people  "  so  sick  that  we  expected  they 
would  have  died,  and  their  skins  peeled  off  fi*om 
head. to  foot."  Bruin  was  very  fat,  and  having  pro- 
cured a  tub  of  blubber  from  the  carcass,  it  was  thrown 
over  board,  and  the  sm^ll  soon  attracted  a  couple 
of  walruses,  the  first  that  had  been  yet  setn. 

They  here  fell  in  with  a  numerous  body  of  the  Es 
animaux,  who  visited  them  from  the  shore.  In  less 
Inan  an  hour  the  ships  were  beset  with  thirty '^ka- 
vaks,"  or  men's  canoes,  and  five  of  the  women's  large 
boats,  or  "  oomiaks."  Some  of'  the  latter  held  up- 
ward of  twenty  women.  A  most  noj^y  but  merry 
barter  instantly  took  place,  the  crew  being  as  anxious 

*  Lyon's  Private  Journal,  p.  11. 


^zM: 


pabkt'b  suoond  voyaok. 


•  t 


lOT 


to  purchase  EBqnimaux  curiosities,  m  tlie  nfttivM  were 
to  procure  iron  and  European  toys. 

''^  It  is  quite  out  of  my  power,  (obeerres  Oaptain 
Lyon,)  to  describe  the  shouts,  yells,  and  laughter  otl 
the  savages,  or  the  confusion  which  existed  for  two  or 
three  hours.  The  lemales  were  at  first  very  shy,  and 
unwillinff  to  come  on  the  ice,  but  bai*tered  every  thing 
from  their  boats.  This  timidity,  however,  soon  wore 
off,  and  they,  in  the  end,  became  as  noisy  and  bois- 
terous as  the  men."  "  It  is  scarcely  possible,  (he  adds) 
to  conceive  any  thins  more  ugly  or  diseustin^  than 
the  countenances  of  the  old  women,  who  had  inlamed 
eyes,  wrinkled  skin,  black  teeth,  and,  in  fact,  such  a 
forbidding  set  of  features  as  scarcely  could  be  called 
human ;  to  which  might  be  added  their  dress,  which 
was  such  as  gave  them  the  appearance  of  aged  ourang* 
outangs.  Frobisher^s  crew  may  be  pardoned  for  hav- 
ing,  in  such  superstitious  times  as  a.  d.  1576,  taken 
one  of  these  ladies  for  a  witch,  of  whom  it  is  said, 
*•  The  old  wretch  whom  our  sailors  supposed  to  be  a 
witch,  had  her  buskins  pulled '  off,  to  see  if  she  was 
cloven-footed ;  and  being  very  vgi^J  aiid  deformed). we 
let  her  go.'"  «:  h>iv 

h  In  bartering  they  have  a  singular  custom  of  rati^- 
ing  the  bargain,  by  licking  the  article  aU  over  before 
it  is  put  away  in  security^.  Captain  Lyoii  says  he  fre- 
quently shuddered  at  seeing  the  children  draw  a  razor 
over  their  tongue,  as  unconcernedly  ae  if  it  had  been 
an  ivory  paper-knife.  I  cannot  forbear  quoting  here 
some  humoiH>ua  passages  from  his  journal,  whicb  stand 
out  in  relief  to  toe  scientific  and  nautical  par^  of  the 
narrative^ 

*^  The  strangers  were  so  well  pleased  in  our  society, 
that  they  showed  no  wis^  to  leave  us,  and  when  the 
market  had  quite  ceased,  they  began  dancing  and 
playing  with  our  people,  on  the  ice  alongside.  This, 
exercise  set  many  of  their  noses  bleeding,  and  discQiF- 
ered  to  us  a  most  nasty  custom,  which  accounted  for 
their  gory  faces,  and  which  was,  that  as  fast  as  the 
blocid  ran  d^wn,  they  scraped  it  with  t^  %il»l9 


0. 


10§ 


H 


pitooBKes  or  AKcriio  Di«oovxar. 


into  their  moathe,  appearing  to  consider  it  as  a  re- 
freshment, or  dainty,  if  we  might  judge  bj  the  x»8t 

with  whicn  they  smacked  their  lips  at  each  supply." 
«        #»        #        »        »        #        ♦ 

*'  In  order  to  amuse  our  new  acquaintances  as  much 
as  possible,  the  fiddler  was  sent  on  the  ice,  where  he 
instantly  found  a  most  delightful  set  of  dancers,  of 
whom  some  of  the  women  kept  pretty  good  time. 
Their  only  figure  consisted  in  Btampins  and  jumping 
with  all  their  might.  Our  musician,  "^o  was  a  lively 
fellow,  soon  caught  the  infection,  and  began  cutting 
capers  also.  In  a  short  time  every  one  on  the  floe, 
officers,  men,  and  savages,  were  dancing  together,  and 
ezliibited  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  sights  I  ever 
witnessed.  One  of  our  seamen,  of  a  fresh,  ruddy 
complexion,  excited  the  admiration  of  all  the  young 
females,  who  patted  his  face,  and  danced  around  him 
wherever  he  went. 

**  The  exertion  of  dancing  so  exhilarated  the  Esqui- 
maux, that  they  had  the  appearance  of  being  boister- 
ously drunk,  and  played  many  extraordinary  pranks. 
Amone  others,  it  was  a  favorite  {oke  to  run  slily  be- 
hind the  seamen,  and  shouting  loudly  in  one  ear,  to 
give  them  at  the  same  time  a  very  smart  slap  on  the 
other.  While  looking  on,  I  was  sharply  saluted  in  this 
manner,  and,  of  course,  was  quite  startled,  to  the 
great  amusement  of  the  bystanders :  our  cook,  who 
was  a  most  active  and  unwearied  lumper,  became  so 
great  a  favorite,  that  every  one  ooxed  his  ears  so 
soundly,  as  to  oblige  the  poor  man  to  retire  from  such 
boisterous  marks  of  approbation.  Amone  other 
sports,  some  of  the  Esquimaux  rather  rougnly,  but 
with  great  good  humor,  challenged  our  people  to 
wrestle.  ^  One  man,  in  particular,  who  had  thrown  sev- 
eral of  his  countrymen,  attacked  an  officer  of  a  very 
strong  make,  but  the  poor  savage  was  instantly  thrown, 
and  with  no  verv  easy  fall ;  yet,  although  every  one 
was  laughing  at  mm,  he  bore  it  with  exemplary  godd 
humor.  The  same  officer  afforded  us  much  diversion 
by  teaching  a  large  party  of^women  to  iSw,  courtesy 


• 


^i 


PABBY'ft  HKUOMD   VOYAOK. 


109 


shake  bands,  turn  tb«ir*to«8  oat,  and  peribrm  Bnn* 
dry  other  polite  accompashments ;  the  whole  part j 
master  and  pupils,  preserving  the  strictest  grayity. 
r  *^  Toward  midnigot  all  our  men,  except -the  watch  on 
deck,  turned  in  to  their  beds,  and  the  fatigued  and 
hungry  £8<][uimaiix  returned  to  their  boats  to  take  their 
supper,  which  consisted  of  lumps  of  raw  flesh  and  blub- 
ber of  seals,  birds,  entrails,  drc. ;  licking  their  fingers 
with  great  sest,  and  with  knives  or  fingers  scraping  the 
blood  and  grease  which  ran  down  their  chins  into  their 
mouths." 

Many  other  parties  of  the  natives  were  fallen  in  with 
during  the  slow  progress  of  the  ships,  between  Salisbury 
and  Nottingham  Islands,  who  were  equally  as  eager  to 
beg,  barter,  or  thieve  ;  and  the  mouth  was  the  general 
repository  of  most  of  the  treasures  they  received  ;  nee- 
dles, pins,  nails,  buttons,  beads,  and  other  small  etcete- 
ras, being  indiscriminately  stowed  there,  but  detracting 
in  nowise  from  their  volubility  of  speech.  On  the  13th 
of  Ai^st  the  weather  being  calm  and  fine,  norwhals  or 
sea-uiiicorns,  were  very  numerous  about  the  ships,  and 
boats  were  sent,  but  without  success,  to  strike  one. 
There  were  sometimes  as  many  as  twentpr  of  these 
beautiful  fish  in  a  shoal,  lifting  at  times  their  immense 
horn  above  the  water,  and  at  others  showing  their 
glossy  backs,  which  were  spotted  in  the  manner  of 
coac^  dogs  in  England.  Toe  leng&  of  these  fish  is 
about  fifteen  feet,  exclusive  of  the  horn,  which  averages 
five  or  six  more. 

Gapt#i  Parry  landed  and  slept  on  Southampton  Isl 
and.  His  boars  crew  caught  m  holes  on  the  beach 
sufficient'"sillocks,  or  young  coal-fish,  to  serve  for  two 
meals  for  the  whole  ship's  company.  Daring  the  night 
white  whales  were  seen  lying  .in  hundreds  dose  to  the 
rocks,  probably  feeding  on  the  sillocks.  After  carefully 
examining  Duke  of  x  ork  Bay,  the  ships  got  into  the 
Frozen  Strait  of  Middleton  on  the  morning  of  the  20th, 
and  an  anxious  day  was  closed  by  passing  an  miening 
to  the  southward,  which  was  found  to  be  Sir  Thomaa 
Roe's  Welcome,  and  heaving  to  for  the  night  off  a  bay 


no 


FBoojinsA  or  AK^no  biseovxRY. 


to  tbo  northwest.  The  ships' got  well  in  to  RopilM 
Bay  on  the  22d,  and  a  carenil  eiamination  of  iti  soores 
was  made  by  the  boats.  < 

'■  Captains  Parry  and  Lyon,  with  sereral  offleers  ft*om 
0Bi;h  ship,  landed  and  explored  the  northern  shores, 
while  a  boat  examined  the  head  of  tli#l>ay.  The  wa- 
ters of  a  long  eoYe  are  described  by  Oaptain  Lyon  aa 
being  absolutely  hidden  bv  the  qnantul6a^,af  yonng 
eide]>dnck8,  which,  nnder  tne  direction  of  th^ir  moth« 
ers,  were  making  theit  first  essays  in  swimming. 

Captain  Lyon  with  a  boat's  crew  made  a  trip  oi  a 
conple  of  days  along  some  of  the  indents  of  the  bay, 
andf  discovered  an  inlet,  which,  however,  on  being  en- 
tered snbsequentiv  by  the  ships,  proved  only  to  be  the 
dividing  channel  oetween  an  island  and  the  main4and, 
about  SIX  miles  in  length  by  one  in  breadth.  Proceed- 
ing to  the  northward  by  Kurd's  channel,  they  expe- 
rienced a  long  rolling  ^ound  swell  setting  aeainst  them. 
On  the  28th,  ascending  a  steep  mountain,  Captai)t 
Lyon  discovered  a  noble  bay,  subsequently  named  Gor  i  >* 
Bay,  in  which  lay  a  few  islands,  and  toward  this  then 
directed  their  course. 

Captain  Parry,  who  had  been  two  days  absent  wif!i 
boats  exploring  the  channel  and  shores  of  the  strait,  iw 
turned  on  the  29th,  but  set  oft'  again  on  tile  same  day 
with  six  boats  to  sound  and  examine  more  mintitelr^.. 
When  Parry  retultied  at  ni^ht,  Mr.  Griffiths,  of  tbe 
Heda,  brought  on  board  a  large  doe,  which  he  had' 
killed  while  swimming  (among  large  masses  of  ice)  fro/Br 
isle  to  isle ;  two  others  and  a  fawn  were  prodjfred  <o 
shore  by  the  Fury's  people.  The  game  laws,  as  thty 
were  laid  down  on  the  former  voyage  while  winterit<g 
at  Melville  Island,  were  once  more  pat  in  force.  The  (ft 
'*  enacted  that  for  the  purpose  of  economizing  the  shi^^s' 
provisions^  all  deer  or  musk-oxen  killed  should  6e 
served  out  in  lieu  of  the  usual  allowance  of  mbat.  ^ 
Har^,  ducks,  and  other  birds  were  liot  atr  this  time  tb ' 
be  included.  As  an  encouragement,  to  ^)oi*tsmcn,  the 
head,  legs,  and  offal  of  the  larger  animals  were  to  bo 
the  perquisitee  of  t^ose  who  procured  the^carcaseee  foi 


.# 


*; 


\ 


^    PAHRY*II  SBOOim  yoYAom,      >■ 


lit 


tho  general  good.^  *^  In  the  animals  of  this  day  (ob- 
Bcrvea  lo^on)  we  wero  convinced  Ibat  our  sporteinon 
had^ot  fofflrotten  the  latitude  to  which  their  perquisites 
might  legauy  extend,  for  the  necks  were  made  so  long 
as  to  encroach  •oonsiderably  on  the  vertebrss  of  the 
back :  a  manner  of  amputating  the  heads  which  had 
been  learned  daring  the  former  voyage,  and,  no  doubt* 
would  be  strictly  acted  up  to  in  th^  present  one.''  -t'-J 
'  While  the  ships  on  the  80th  were  proceeding  through 
4lii8  strait,  having  to  contend  with  heayy  wind  and 
wild  ice,  which  with  an  impetuous  tide  ran  against  the 
rocks  with  loud  crashes,  at  the  rate  of  five  knots  in  the 
center  stream;  four  boats  towing  astern  were  torn 
away  by  the  ice,  and,  with  the  men  in  them,  were  for 
some  time  in  great  danger.  The  vessels  anchored  for 
the  night  in  a  small  nook,  and  weighing  at  daylight 
on  the  31st,  they  stood  to  the  eastward,  but  Gore  Bay 
was  found  closdyv'  packed  with  ice,  and  most  of  the  in^ 
lets  they  passeoVere  also  beset. 
^  A  prevalence  of  fog,  northerly  wind,  and  heavy  ice 
in  floes  of  somb  miles  in  circumference,  now  carried 
the  ships,  in  spite  of  constant  labor  and  exertions,  in 
three  days,  back  to  the  very  spot  in  Fox's  Channel, 
where  a  month  ago  they  had  commenced  their  opera- 
tions. It  was  not  till  the  5th  of  Seutember,  that  they 
could  again  gefrforwardf  and  iJien  %  one  of  the  usual 
changes  in  the  navigation  of  these  seas,  the  ships  ran 
well  to  the  northeast 'unimpeded,  at  the  rate  of  six 
knots  a$  hour,  anchoring  for  the  nisht  at  the  mouth  of 
a  large  ;opening,  which  was  namea  Lyon  Inlet.  The 
next  da^  th^  proceeded  about  twenty-five  miles  up 
this  inlet,  which  appeared  to  be  about  eight  miles  broad. 
Captain  Parry  pushed  on  with  two  boats  to  examine 
the  head  of  the  inlet,  taking  provisions  for  a  week, 
lie  returned  on  the  14th,  having  failed  in  finding  any 
outlet  to  the  place  he  haid  been  examining,  which  was 
very  extensive,  full  of  fiords  and  rapid  overfells  of  the 
tide.  lie  had  procured  a  sufficiency  of  game  to  afibrd 
his  pec^le  a  hot  supper  every  evening,  which,  after  the 
constant  labor  of  the  da  f ,  was  highly  acceptable.    He 


M 


•iH 


# 


112 


?B0GBE8S  OF  ASCnO  DISOOVEU^.^* 


I  •; 


•r* 


fell  in  also  with  a  small  party  of  natives  m  Ik>  displayed 
the  usual  thievins  ,pFop|ensitie8. 

Animal  food  ot  all  kinds  was  found  to  bo  very  plen- 
tiful in  this  locality.  A  fine  salmon  trout  was  brought 
down  by  one  of  the  officers  from  a  lake  in  the  moun- 
tains. The  crew  of  the  Heda  killed  in  a  fortnight  four 
deer,  forty  hares,  eighty-two  ptarmigan,  fifty  ducks, 
three  divers,  three  foxes,  three  ravens,  four  seals,  er- 
mines, marmottes,  mice,  &e.  Two  of  the  seals  killed 
wore  immense  animals  of  the  bearded  species  (Phoca 
harbcUa^  very  fat,  weighing  about  eisht  or  nine  cwt; 
the  others  were  the  common  species,  p^.  vituUna.) 

Captain  Parry  again  left  in  boats,  on  the  15th,  to  ex- 
amine more  carefuSy  the  land  that  had  been  passed  so 
rapidly  on  the  5th  and  6th.  Kot  finding  him  return 
on  the  24th,  Captain  Lyon  ran  down  the  coast  to  meet 
him,  and  by  burning  blue  lights,  fell  in  with  him  at 
ten  that  night..  It  appeared  he  had  been  frozen  up 
for  two  days  on  the  second  evenii^  after  leaving. 
When  he  got  clear  he  ran  down  to,  and  sailed  round, 
Gore  Bay,  at  that  time  perfectly  clear\,of  ice,  but  by 
the  next  morning  it  was  quite  filled  with  heavy  pieces, 
which  much  impeded  his  return.  Once  more  he  was 
frozen  up  in  a  small  bay,  where  he  was  detained'  three 
days ;  when,  finding  there  was  no  chance  of  getting 
out,  in  consequeiiie  of  Jhe  rapid  formation  of  ypuuff 
ice,  by  ten  hours'  severe  labor,  the  boats  were  carried 
over  a  low  point  of  land,  a  mile  and  a  half  wide,  and 
once  more  launched.  # 

On  the  6th  of  October,  the  impediments  of  ice  con- 
tinuing to  increase,  being  met  with  in  all  |ts  formations 
of  sludges  or  young  ice,,  pancake  ice  and  bay  ice,  a 
small  open  bay  "within  a  cape  of  land,  forming  the 
southeast  extremity  of  an  island  off  Lyon  Inlet,  was 
sounded,  and  being  found  to  be  safe  anchorage  the  ships 
were  brought  in,  and,  from  the  indications  which  were 
setting  in,  it  was  finally  determined  to  secure  them  there 
for  the  winter ;  by  means  of  a  cunal  half  a  mile  long, 
which  was  cut,  they  were  taken  further  into  the  bay. 
The  island  was  named  Winter  Isle. 

Preparations  were  now  made  for  occupation   and 


'•■■    .  •' 

'» 

.  ^  parry'b  seoond  yotaob.  118 

luniiBement,  so  as  to  pass  away  pleasantly  the  period 
of  detention.    A  ^ood  stoek  of  tne|trical  dresses  and 

{)ropertie8  having  been  laid  in  by  ^he  ofEicers  before 
eaving  England,  arrangements  were  made  for  perform- 
ing plays  fortnightly,  as  on  their  last  winter  residence, 
as  a  means  of  amusing  the  seamen,  and  in  some  degree 
to  break  the  tedious  monotony  of  their  confinement.  As 
there  could  be  no  desire  or  hoi^  jL^KceUiog,  every 
officer's  name  was  readily  entei^p^fla  the  list  of  dra- 
matis  peraonWy  Captain  Lyon  ]^dly  undertaking  the 
difficuU  office  of  manager.  Those  ladies  (says  Lyon^ 
who  had  cherished  the  growth  of  their  beards  sua 
whiskers,  as  a  defense  against  the  inclemency  of  the 
climate,  now  generously  agreed  to  do  away  with  such 
unfeminine  ornaments,  and  every  thing  bade  fair  for  a 
most  stylish  theater. 

As  a  curiosity,  I  may  here  put  on  record  the  play 
bill  for  the  evening.  I  have  added  the  ship  to  which 
each  officer  beldl^ed. 

THEATER  ROYAL,  ^ 

*^  *  WINTEB  ISLE. 

The  Public  are  respectfully  iuformed  tbat  this  little, 
..  yetHlegant  Theater,  will  open  for  the  season  on  Fri- 
I  day  next,  the  9th  of  ilove]||ber,%21,  when  will  be 
y^  performed  Sheridan's  celebrated  Comedy  of 

THE  RIVALS. 

Sir  Anthony  Absolute    Captain  Parry,  (^t^ry.) 
Captain  Absolute    -    -  Captain  Lyon, ju5?«cZa.) 
Sir  Lucius  OWrigger^    Mr.  Crozier,  {^ury^ 
Faulkland^  -    -    -    -    Mr.  J.  Edwards,  (Fury^ 

Acres^    ------  J|j[r.  J.  Henderson,  {Fv/ry^ 

Fay^     ------    Lieut.  Uoppner,  {Hecla^ 

Da^id,  ------  Lieut.  Reid,  (Fitrv,^ 

Mrs.  Jfalapropj     -  .  -    Mr.  C.  Richards,  Ifiecla.) 
Julia,     -----       Mr.  W.  H.  Hooper,  {Fury.) 

Lydia  Languish^  -    -    Mr.  J.  Sherer,  {Mecla.) 
Lucy,     -    -    -    -         -  'M.r.'W.'M.ogg,{crkqfMecla.) 


iU 


PBoCHuaM  OF  Asano  disoo' 


S('- 


'^' 


>  SoBgfiT  %»T  Metso.  0«,  Palmer,  (Heclaj)  and  J.  H^-  \ 
d#if80%  will  be  jjlbrodiieed  in  tb«  course  ci  thtf  eve- 

On  tbe  IttH  of  I)eceml)er,  a  sMvering  set  of  actors 
■petSefnaed  to  a  great-coated,  yet  very  cold  audience. 
the  e&medj  of  the  "  Poor  Geiitlenaan.*'  A  bttr^l  of 
true  EDglisHlltillltens  esthibited  dnring  the  jperfdrm 
toce  of  tliis  P^y^^^PJJ^  scene  -wher^i  iteUt.  W'o^th- 
ington  Bxid,  &r^oreM|^(7«9  reconnt  in  bo  animated  a 
manner  their  former ^hievementd,  advancing  iat  the 
same  time,  and  huzzaing  for  ^^  Old  England,"  the 
whole  attdien>ce,  with  one  accord,  rose  and  gave  three 
most  heart j  cheere.  They  then  sat  down,  and  th^ 
pl^  continued  uninterrupted.  ''^" . 

On  Christmas  Evej  in  order  to  keep  the  people 
^uiet  and  sober,  two  fartses  were  performed,  and  the 
phantasmagoria,  (which  had  been  Jjjbidly  |>res6nted 
anonymouwy  to  the  ships  before  leimng,  by  a  lady,) 
exhibited,  so  thaA  the  nigl^  passed  m^rtily  away. 

The  coldness  of  th^  weather  proved  no  bar  to  the 
performance  of  a  play  at  the  appointed  time.  If  it 
amused  the  seamen,  the  purpose  was  answered,  but  it 
was  a  cruel  task  to  performers.  HIn  ottr  green^roona^ 
(says  Lyon,ywhi^  was  as  much  warmed  as  ai^  other 
part  of  the  Thea  A,  th^^erslimeter  ^tood  at  16®,  and 
on  a  table  which  was  placed  over  a  stove,  and  about 
six  inches  above  it,  the  cofiee  froze  in  the  cups.  For 
my  sins,  I  was  obliged  to  be  dressed  in  the  h^isht  of 
the  fashion,  as  I>iok  Dowlas,  in  the  "Heir  at  Law," 
and  went  nirough  the  last  scene  of-^J^e  play  with 
two  of  my  fingers  frost-bitten^  Let  t^se  who  have  m, 
witnessed  and  admired  the  performances  of  a  Young,  * 
answer  if  he  could  possibly  ha/e  stood  so  cold  a  recep- 
tion." ■■  ■      ■■■■         ■"  /   ,'  /  .-v^-n 

Captain  Parry  also  states  in  his  Journal,  "Among 
the  recreations  which  afforded  the  highest  gratifica* 
tion  to  several  among  us,  I  may  mention  the  musical 
oarties  we  were  enabled  to  muster,  and  which  assem- 
bled on  stated  evenings  throughout  the  winter,  alter  , 


1     ■; 


^        PABBV'b  BKCONP  YOYAOJk 


115 


*• 


Bfttelj  in  Commander  Lyon*<i  oabui)  and  in  my  own. 
jytor&skmM  amateurs  in  music  mjighi  well  have  smiled 
%t  tlieee,  our  humble  conceits,  btit  it  will  not  incline 
them  to  thmli:  less  of  the  seienoe  they  admire,  to  be 
loured  that,  in  ^ese  remote  and  desolate  regions  of 
the  globe,  it  has  often  furnished  us  with  the  most 
pleasurable  sensations  which  our  siitiuition  was  capable 
Of  affording;  for, independently  ^^jf  the  mere gratiiica- 
tiifti  afforded  to  the  ear  by  music,  there  is,  perhajM, 
sofl^oly  a  person  in  the  world  r0ally  fond  of  it,  in 
whose  mind  its  sound  is  not  more  or  less  connected 
,with>hisfar4i<3tant  home.'  There  are  always  some 
isemembran^es  which, render  them  inseparable,  and 
tiliose  associations  are  not  to  be  despised,  which,  while 
lire  are  engaged  in  the  performance  of  our  duty,  can 
stUl  occasionally  transport  us  into  the  social  circle  of 
our  friends  at  home,  in  spite  of  the  oceans  that  roll  be- 
jtweon  us."  ]^]^t  their  attention  was  not  confined  to 
more  amusemints.  Much  to  the  credit  of  the  seamen, 
im  applioation  was  f&ade  in  each  ship  for  i>ermission 
to  open  an  evening  school,  which  was  willinffly  ac- 
ceded to.  Almost  every  man  could  read,  and  some 
4!|ould  write  a  little,  but  several  found  that,  from  long 
disuse,  it  was  requisite  to  begin  a^ain. 

A^Halse  volunteered  to  supermtend  the  classes  in 

iheFury ;  whUfi  Benjamin  Whitefaieaman,  who  had  been 

,#dncat$d  at  Christ's  Hospital,  officiated  as  schoolmaster 

in  the  Heda,  and  those  best  qualified  to  assist  aided 

in  the  instruction  of  Iheit  shitHuates,  who  made  rapid 

pFOgresB  under  their  tuition.    On  Christmas  Day,  Capt 

Lyon  statesjij|at  he  received  sixteen  copies  firom  men, 

who,  two  xSKltiaA  be|pre,  scarcely  knew  their  letters. 

l^hese-  little  speciinens  were  all  well  written,  and  sent 

with  as  much  pride  as  if  the,  writers  had  been  good 

j^little  schoolboys,  instead  of  stout  and  excellent  seamen. 

,    An  observatory  was  erected  on  shore,  for  carrying 

>on  magnetical,  astronomical,  and  other  scientific  opera- 

^|i<ms.   Foxes  were  very  plentiful  about  the  ships ;  fifteen 

I  were  caught  in  one  trap  in  four  hours  on  the  night  of 

.the  25>th  of  October;  and.  above  one  hundred  were 


ae 


PB00RE8B  OF  AKCTIO  DffiOOVBST. 


e(Hier  trapped  or  killed  in  the  oonrse  of  liired'  m^nllis, 
and  yet  there  seewd  but  little  diminution  in  their 
numbers.  Oaptain^yon  says  he  found  them  not  bad 
eating,  the  flesn  much  resembling  that  of  kid.  A  pack 
of  thirteen  wolves  came  occasionally  to  hare  a  look  at 
the  ships,  and  on  one  occasion  broke  into  a, snow-house 
alongside,  and  walked  off  with  a  couple  of  Esquimaux 
dogs  confined  there.  Bears  now  and  thrai  i^  maide 
their  appearance. 

A.  Tory  beautiful  ermine  waUced  on  board  the  Heda 
one  day,  and  was  caught  in  a  small  trap  placed  on  the 
i  deck,  certainly  the  first  of  these  animals  which  was 
ever  taken  alive  on  board  a  ship  400  yards  from  the 
land.  The  ravenous  propensities  of  even  some  of  the 
smaUest  members  of  tne  animal  kingdom  are  exempli- 
fied by  the  following  extract :  — 

''  We  had  for  some  time  observed  that  in  the  fire- 
hole,  which  was  kept  qpen  in  the  ice  a^gside,  a  count- 
less multitude  of  small  shrimps  wer&  constantly  rising 
near  the  surface,  and  we  soon  found  that  in  twenty-four 
hours  they  would  deaUj  in  the  most  beautifol  manner, 
the  skeletons.''  *    • 

After  attending  divine  service  on  Christmas  day,  the 
officers  and  crews  sat  down  to  the  luxury  of  joii|^ts  of 
English  roast  beef,  which  had  been  kept  untaiiiHd  by 
being  frozen,  and  tile  outside  nibbed  with  salt.  C^n- 
berry  pies  and  puddings,  <^  every  shape  and  size,  wi& 
a  full  allowance  of  spirits,  followed,  and,  probably  the 
natural  attendance  of  headaches  succeeaed^  for  the 
next  morning  it  was  deemed  expedient  to  send  all  th6 
pe(^le  for  a  ran  on  the  ice,  in  ordeR^fc  put  them  to 
rights  ;  but  thick  weather  con^H^  o%  iHecame  neces- 
sary to  recall  them,  and,  postponing  the  dinner  hour, 
they  were  all  danced  sober  by  one  o'clock^  l^e  fiddler 
.being,  fortunately,  quite  as  he  should  be.  Inuring  this 
curious  ball,  a  witty  fellow  attended  as  an  old  cake 
woman,  with  lumps  of  frozen  snow  in  a  bucket ;  and 
8ucb  was  the  demiuid  for  his  pies  on  this  occasion,  that 
he  was  obliged  to  replenish  pretty  frequently.  The 
year  had  now  <frfiwn  ^  a  close,  wi  allenjoyMi  exeel* 


PASBY'b  BBC»ND  YOTAjQB. 


M 


lent  health,  and  were  blessed  with  good  sprits,  and  seal 
ifor  the  renewal  of  their  arduous  exertions  in  the  sum- 
mer, ■         ■-  m 

Ko  signs  of  scurvj,  the  usual  pla^e  of  such  vojr- 
ages,  had  occurred,  and  bj  the  plans  ot  detain  Parry, 
as  carried  out  go,  the  former  voyage,  a  sufficiency  of 
mustard  and  cress  was  raised  between  decks  to  afford 
all  hands  a  salad  once,  ai\jd  sometimes  twice  a  week. 
Th0  cold  now  became  intense.  Wine  frose  in  the  bofr- 
ties,  Fort  was  congealed  into  thin  pink  laminae,  which 
lay  loosely,  and  occupied  the  whole  length  of  the  bot- 
tle. White  wine,  on  the  con^ary,  froze  into  a  solid 
and  perfectly  traxisparent  mass,  resembling  nmber. 

On  the  1st  of  February  the  monotony  of  their  life 
was  varied  by  the  arrival  of  a  large  party  of  Esqui- 
maux, and  an  interchange  of  visits  henceforward  took 
>  place  with  this  tribe,  '^mch,  singularly  enough,  were 
proverbial  for  their  honesty.  Ultimately,  nowever, 
they  began  to  display  some  thievish  propensities,  lor 
on  one  evening  in  March  a  most  shocking  theft  was 
committed,  which  was  no  less  than  the  last  piece  of 
English  corned  beef  from  the  midshipmen's  mess. 
Had  it  been  an  181b.  carronade,  or  even  one  of  the  an- 
chors, the  thieves  would  have  been  welcome  to  it ;  but 
to  purloin  English  beef  in  such  a  country  was  unpar- 
donable. 

On  the  15th  of  March  Captain  Lyon,  Lieutenant 
palmer,  and  a  partj  of  men,  left  the  ship,  with  pro* 
vision^  tents,  &c.,  m  a  large  sledge,  for  an  excursion 
of  three  or  four  days,  to  examine  the  land  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  tiie  ships. 

The  firstflttit's  engunpment  was  anything  but  com- 
fortable, ^^^r  tenfMiey  found  so  cold,  that  it  was 
determined  to  make  a  cavern  in  the  snow  to  sleep  in ; 
and  digging  this  afibrded  so  good  an  opportunity  of 
warming  themselves,  that  the  only  shovel  was  lent  from 
one  to  the  other  as  a  particular  favor.  After  digging 
it  of  sufficient  size  to  contain  them  all  in  a  sitting  pos- 
ture, by  means  of  the  smoke  of  a  fire  they  managed  tP 
raise  the  temperature  to  20^^,  and,  clpsiug  the  entranco 


Ml 


PB0OBKS6  or  AROnO   TO0OOVBRY. 


wiiih  blocks  oi  enow,  crept  into  their  blanket  bags  and 
triflKl  to  Bleep,  witii  tk»  pleasant  refleetioa  that  their 
roof  might  mU  in  dfed  bury  them  all,  and  that  their  dne 
»pade  was  the  0DI7  means  of  liberation  after  a  night's 
drift  of  snow.  * 

Thej  woke  next  morning  to  enoonnter  a  heavy  gale 
and  drifts  and  found  their  sledge  so  embedded  in  the 
snow  that  lAiey  conld  not  get  at  it,  and  In  the  attempt 
tiieir  feces  and  extremities  were  most  painfollj  Mst- 
bitteo.  The  thermometer  was  at  82°  below  zero ;  thej 
conld  not)  moreover,  see  a  yard  of  l^e  road ;  yet  to  re- 
main appeared  worse  than  to  go  forward — the  last 
>lan  was,  therefore,  decided  on.  Hie  ^int,  sledge,  and 
were  left  behind,  and  with  only  a  few  pounds 
of  Bread,  a  little  mm,  and  a  spade,  the  party  again  set 
out ;  and  in  order  to  depict  their  simerings,  I  must  take 
up  l^e  narrative  as  related  by  Ihe  commander  himself:  • 
:  "Not  knowing  where  to  go,  we  wandered  amonff 
the  heavy  hummo<^  of  ice,  and  f uffering  from  cold, 
fetigud  imd  anxiety,  were  soon  colmpletely  bewildered. 
Several  of  our  party  now  beean  to  exhibit  symptoms 
of  that  horrid  kind  of  insensibility  which  is  the  pre- 
lude to  sleep.  They  all  professed  extreme  willingness 
to  do  what  they  were  tola  in  order  to  keep  in  exercise, 
but  ndtie  obeyed  ;  on  the  contrary,  they  reeled  about 
like  drunken  men.  The  faces  of  several  were  sevwely 
frost^biUen,  and  some  had  for  a  considerable  time  lost 
sensation  in  their  fingers  and  toes ;  yet  they  made  not 
the  sli^test  exertion  to  rub  the  parts  affiscted,  aM  even 
discontinued  the'jr  general  custom  of  wanping  each 
other  on  observing  a  discoloration  of  ^|  skin.  Hr. 
]Palm^  employed  3ie  pteple  inJmildingJH  snow  wall, 
ostensibly  as  a  shditer  myth.  tlVwind,  but  in  &ct  to 
give  them  exercise,  when  standing  still  must  have 
proved  fetal  to  men  in  our  circumstances.  My  atten- 
tion was  exdusively  directed  to  Serjeant  Speckman, 
who,  haviiMf  been  repeatedlv  warned  that  his  nose  was, 
frozen,  haa  paid  no  attention  to  it,  owing  to  the  state 
of  stupefection  into  which  he  had  fallen.  The  frost* 
bit@  h#d  now  extei^d^i)  pver  one  f>id<»  of  his  face,  which' 


n 


b€ 


r  i4rAMnr'B  8B00ND  VOTAOB.  «*« 


119 


was  ivoma  as  hard  as  a  mask  ;  the  ejvlids  were  stift^ 
and  oue  comer  of  the  upper  lip  so  drawn  up  as  to 
expose  the  teeth  and  gums*  My  hands  being  still 
warm,  I  had  the  happiness  of  restoring  the  eircuTation, 
after  whidi  I  used  all  my  endeavors  to  keep  the  poor 
fellow  in  motion ;  bnt  he  complained  sadly  of  giddi- 
ness and  dimness  of  sight,  and  was  so  weak  as  to  be 
unable  to  walk  without  assistance.  His  case  was  so 
alarming,  tiiat  I  expected  every  moment  he  would  lie 
down,  never  to  rise  again. 

,  "Our  prosit  now  became  every  moment  more 
gloomy,  and  it  was  but  too  probable  that  four  of  our 
party  would  be  unable  to  survive  another  hour.  Mr. 
ralmer,  however,  endeavored,  as  well  as  myself,  to 
cheer  the  people  up,  but  it  was  a  fieiint  attempt,  as  we 
had  not  &  single  hope  to  give  them.  Every  piece  of 
ioe,  or  even  of  small  rock  or  stone,  was  now  supposed 
to  be  the  ships,  and  we  had  great  difficulty  in  prevent- 
ing the  men  from  runnlag  to  the  different  objects  which 
attracted  them,  and  consequently  losing  themselves  in 
the  drift.  In  this  state,  while  Mr.  Palmer  was  running 
round  us  to  warm  himsdf^  he  suddenly  pitched  on  a 
new  beaten  track,  and  as  exercise  was  indispensable, 
we  determined  on  following  it,  wherever  it  might  lead 
us.  Having  taken  the  Sergeant  under  my  coat,  he  re- 
covered a  little,  and  we  moved  onward,  when  to  our 
infinite  joy  we  found  that  the  path  led  to  the  ships." 

As  tlie^esult  of  this  exposure,  one  man  had  two  of 
his  fingeilnB^adly  firost-bitten  as  to  lose  a  good  deal 
of  the  flesh  ^the  upper  ends,  and  for  many  days  it 
was 

putated. 
been 

getting  below,  and'  eveiy  one  had  severe  frost-bites  in 
aifierent  parts  of  the  body,  which  recovered  after  the 
usual  loss  of  skin  in  these  cases. 

One  of  the  Esquimaux  females,  by  name  Igloolik, 
who  plays  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  narrative,  was  a 
general  favorite,  being  possessed  of  a  large  fand  of 
useful  information,  having  a  good  voice  and  ear  fbt 


cW 


PBOGKI88  OV  ABCna  IMBOOTEBY. 


.^cHisic,  l>eing  an  excellent  Beanistress,  and  having  tneh 
.a^p(K>d  idea  of  the  hydrography  and  bearings  of  the 
neighhoring  sea-coasts,  as  to  draw  charts  whidi  glided 
Pai'ry  much  in  his  future  operations,  for  he  found  her 
sketches  to  be  in  the  main  correct.  She  c(»inected  the 
land  from  their  winter  quarters  to  the  northwest  sea, 
rounding  and  terminating  the  northern  extremity  of 
this  part  of  America,  by  a  larse  island,  and  a  strait  of 
sufficient  magnitude*  to  affora  a  safe  passage  for  the 
ships.  This  little  northwest  passage,  observes  Lyon, 
set  us  all  castle-building,  and  we  fuready  fancied  the 
worst  part  of  our  voyage  over  ;  or,  at  all  events,  that 
before  half  the  ensuing  summer  was  past,  we  should 
arrive  at  Akkoolee,  the  Esquimaux  settlement  on  the 
we^l^rn  shore.  Half-way  between  that  coast  and  Ke 
pulse  Bay,  Igloolik  drew  on  her  chart  a  lake  of  consid- 
erable size,  having  small  streams  running  from  ith  to 
the  sea,  on  each  side ;  and  the  correctness  of  this  infor- 
mation was  fully  proved  by  Bae  in  his  recent  expedi- 
tion in  1846. 

On  the  18th  of  -April  tibeir  Esquimaux  Mends  took 
their  departure  for  other  quarters ;  towards  the  end  of 
the  month  the  crews  completed  the  cutting  of  trenches 
round  the  vessels,  in  order  that  they  might  rise  to  their 
proper  bearingB  previous  to  working  in  the  holds,  and 
the  ships  floated  like  corks  on  their  native  element, 
after  their  long  imprisonment  of  191  days.  As  the 
season  appear^  to  1be  improving,  another  mnd  expedi- 
.  tion  was  determined  on,  and  Captain  Wgcn^and  Lieu- 
tenant PaliQer,  attended  by  a  party  ol^ight  men,  set 
off  on  the  8th  of  Iday,  taking  with  ihem  twenty  days' 
provisions.  Each  man  di|tt^on  a  sKgQ  126  lbs.,  and 
the  officers  95  lbs.  a-piece. 

"  Loaded  as  we  were,"  says  the  leader,  "it  was  with 
the  gr^^t  difficulty  we  made  our  way  among  and 
over  the  hummocks,  ourselves  and  sledges  taking  some 
very  unpleasant  tumbles.  It  required  two  and  a  half 
iiours  to  cross  the  ice,  althoi:^  the  distance  was  not 
two  miles,  and  we  then  landed  on  a  small  islfuad,  where 
we  pa^sfia  ^  n.'fht."  ir 


,  f  <  s^ 


IPASBY'B  tBOOlfD  VOTAMb. 


Ill 


'  "^^ 


gc^v^ralislandi  ftnd  Bboris  in  the  strait  were  Darned 
Lird*s  Isles.  At  noon  on  the  11th,  thej  camped  at  the 
head  of  a  line  bay,  to  which  the  name  of  Blake  was 
ffiven.  In  spite  of  all-  the  care  which  had  been  taken 
by  using  crape  shades,  and  other  coverings  for  the  eyes, 
live  of  the  PMrty  becune  severely  afflicted  with  snow 
blindness.  Before  eyening;>two  of  the  suff&rers  were 
quite  blinded  by  the  inflammation.  Their  fifkces,  eyes, 
and  even  heads,  beine  much  swollen,  and  very  red. 
Bathing  would  have  anbrded  relief,  but  the  sun  did  not 
produce  a  drop  of  water,  and  their  stock  of  fuel  being 
-limited,  they^  could  only  spare  enough  wood  to  thaw 
snow  for  tiieir  midday  araught. 

As  the  morning  of  the  12ui  brought  no  change  in  ih» 
invalids,  another  day  was  lost  Toward  eyening,  by 
breaking  pieces  of  ice,  and  placing  them  in  the  full 

glare  of  the  sun,  sufficient  water  was  obtained,  both  for 
rinking  and  for  the  sick  to  bathe  their  faces,  which 
aifordedthem  amazing  relief,  and  on  the  morrow  they 
were  enabled  to  resume  their  journey.  At  noon  the 
sun  was  sufficiently  powerful  to  afford  the  travelers  a 
drau^t  of  water,  without  having  to  thaw  it,  as  had 
hitherto  been  the  case. 

For  nearly  three  days  after  this,  they  were  imprisoned 
in  their  low  tent  by  a  snow-storm,  but  on  the  morning 
of  the  18th,  they  were  enabled  to  sally  out  to  stretch 
their  legs,  and  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  sun.  After  exam- 
ining mamLbajs  and  indentations  of  the  coast,  the  party 
returned  oPtlS  ships  on  the  evening  of  the  21st.  A 
canal  was  now  cut  throng  the  ice,  to  get  the  ships  to 
the  open  water,,in  length  2400  feet,  and  varying  in 
breadth  from  60  to  197  ^i|b  The  avera^  thiclmess  af 
the  ice  was  four  feet,  but  in  some  places  it  was  as  much 
as  twelve  foet.  This  truly  arduous  task  had  occupied  the 
crews  for  fifteen  days,  from  six  in  the  morning  to  eight 
in  the  evening;  but  they  labored  at  it  with  the  greatest 
spirit  and  ^ood  humor,  and  it  was  concluded  on  the  18th 
of  June,  wnen  the  officers  and  men  began  to  take  leave 
of  their  several  haunts  and  promenades,  particularly 
the  "  garden  "  of  each  ship,  wnich  had  become  &vorite 


•€* 


rfei'Miiii 


it2 


rnOaiUBM  or  ABOflO  DISOOTEItT. 


f  lotingeB  dnrihg  their  nine  months'  detentiou.  A  f v  ; 
ft.fll-£ited  banting  cama  near  enough  to  be  shot,  and  we  o 
» instantly  roasted  for  a  tarewell  supper,  and  bright  yw- 
ions  of  active  exertions  on  the  water  oti  the  morrow 
were  universally  entertained.  But  the  night  dispelled 
all  these  airy  eastles,  for  with  the  mominifs  dawn  they 
tunnd  that  the  whole  body  of  ice  astern  of  the  ships 
had  broke  adrift,  iHled  up  the  bard-wrought  canal,  aud 
iniprisoned  them  as  firm  as  ever.  -  ^ 

Death  now  for  the  iirst  dme  visited  the  crews.  James 
Pringle,a  seaman  of  the  Hecla,fell  from  themadt-head 
to  the  deck,  and  was  killed  on  the  18th  of  Hny.  Wra. 
Souter,  qnai'ter-master,  and  John  Reid,  Carpenter's 
mate,  belonging  to  the  Fury,  died  on  the  36th  and  27thy 
of  mitural  causes.  Towiurd  the  end  of  June,  the  sea 
began  to  clear  rapidly  to  the  eastward,  and  the  bay  ice 
soon  gave,  way  as  fiir  as  where  the  ships  Were  lying,  and 
on  the  2d  of  July  they  put  to  sea  with  a  fresh  breeze, 
after  having  been  frozen  in  for  267  days. 

In  making  their  way  to  the  northward,  they  were  fre- 
auently  in  much  dan^r.  On  the  8d,  the  ice  came 
down  on  the  Heda  wiSi  such  force  as  to  carry  her  on 
board  the  Fury,  by  which  the  Hecla  broke  her  best  bowei 
Anchor,  and  eut  her  waist-boat  in  two.  On  the  4tL  the 
pressure  of  the  ice  was  so  great  as  to  break  the  Hecla 
adrift  irom  three  hawsers.  Four  or  five  men  were  each 
on  separate  pieces  of  ice,  parted  from  the  ships  in  the 
endeavor  to  run  out  a  hawser.  A  heavy  mreMpre  closing 
^e  loose  ice  unexpectedly  save  them  &osf  on  board 
again,  or  they  must  havift  Deen  carrieei  away  by  the 
•treaitt  to  certain  destruction.  On  the  8th,  the  Hecla 
bad  got  her  s^am-cable  cf%  in  addition  to  the  other 
hawsers,  and  made  fast  to  the  land  ice,  when  a  verv 
heavy  and  extensive  floe  took  the  ship  on  her  broad 
0ide,  and  beins  backed  by  another  large  body  of  ice, 
gradually  lifted  her  stem  as  if  hj  the  «ctioii  of  a  wedge. 
"The  weight  every  moment  increasing,  obliged  hs,'' 
•ays  Captain  Lyon,  "  to  veer  on  the  hawsers,  whose  fric- 
tion was  so  great  as  nearly  to  cut  through  the  bitt-heads, 
9Md  ukimately  to  set  them  on  fire,  so  that  it  becanio 


.rttr 


rxamy^t  Mmjonp  votacmk' 


reqnlttite  Hn  people  to  attend  with  baekets  of  mtter. 

'Thfj  presMire  was  at  lenoth  too  powerftil  fi>r  Nsittanoe, 
and  the  stream-cablo,  with  two  iix  and  one  iiTe-indi 
hawsers,  fdl  gave  waj  at  the  same  moment,  three  others 
soon  following  them.  The  sea  was  too  full  of  ioe  to 
allow  the  ship  to  drive,  and  the  only  way  in  whieh  she 
could  yield  to  the  enormous  weight  which  oppressed  her, 
was  by  leaning  oyer  on  the  land  ice,  while  ner  stem  at 
the  same  time  was  entirely  lifted  to  above  the  height  of 
five  het  out  of  the  water.  The  lower  deck  beams  now 
complained  very  much,  and  the  whole  frame  of  the 

,  ship  underwent  a  trial  which  would  have  proved  fatal 
to  any  less  strei^^hened  vessel.  At  the  same  moment, 
the  rudder  was  unhung  with  a  sudden  jerk,  which  broke 
up  the  rudder-case,  and  struck  the  driver-boom  with 
great  force.'' 

From  this  perilous  position  stte  was  released  almost 
by  a  miracle,  and  the  rudder  re-hung. 
The  ships  a*,  last  reached  the  island  which  had  been  so 

.  accurately  described  to  them  by  the  Esquimaux  lady  — 
Iglolik,  where  they  came  upon  an  encampment  of 
120  Esquimaux,  in  tents.  Captains  Parry  and  Lyon 
and  other  officers  made  frequent  exploring  excursions 
along  the  shores  of  the  Fury  and  Heola  strait,  and  in- 
land.   On  tlie  26th  of  August  the  ships  entered  this 

•  strait,  which  was  found  blocked  up  wiih  flat  ice.  The 
season  had  also  now  assumed  so  wintry  an  aspect  that 
there  seen^d  but  little  probability  of  getting  much  far- 
ther westf  knowing  of  no  harbor  to  protect  the  ships, 
unless  a  fi&Torable  change  4ook  place,  fbey  had  tlio 
gloomy  prospect  before  uem  of  wintering  m  or  near 
this  frozen  strait  Boatiiig  and  land  parties  were  dis- 
patched in  several  directions,  to  report  upon  the  differ- 
ent localities. 

On  the  4th  of  September,  Captain  Lyon  landed  on 
an  island  of  slate  formation,  about  six  miles  to  the  west- 
ward of  the  ships,  which  he  named  Amherst  Island.  The 
result  ef  these  expeditions  proved  that  it  was  impracti- 
cable, either  by  boats  or  water  conveyance,  to  examine 
any  part  of  the  land  southwest  of  Iglolik,  in  conso> 
qiience  of  the  ice.      8 


m^ 


PBOOBICM  or  AUOriO  DOOOVKIir. 


^-  Mr.  Bold  *nd  a  boat-party  traveled  about  sizt^r  miles 

^  Ibo  westward  of  Amherst  Island,  and  ascertained  the 

termination  of  the  strait    On  a  consultation  with  the 

i^^cen,  Captain  Parry  determined  to  seek  a  berth  near 

to  ^loJ^k,  in  which  to  secure  the  ships  for  the  winter. 

They  had  now  been  sixty-fiye  days  strngsling  to  get 

forward,  bat  had  only  in  that  time  reached  forty  miles 

to  the  westward  of  Iglolik.    The  vessels  made  the  beet 

of  their  way  to  the  natural  channel  between  this  island 

and  the  land,  but  were  for  some  time  drifted  with  the 

ice,  losing  several  anchors,  and  it  was  only  bv  hard 

work  in  cutting  channels  that  they  were  brought  into 

■Mer  quarters,  near  the  land.    Some  fine  teams  of  dogs 

•^  were  here  purchased  from  the  Esquimaux,  which  were 

i  found  very  serviceable  in  making  excursions  on  sledges. 

Their  second  ChristmaQ  day  in  this  regioii  had  now 
arrived,  and  Lyon  informs  us — 

"  Captain  Parry  dined  with  me,  and  was  treated  with 
a  superb  display  of  mustard  and  cress,  with  about  fifty 
onions,  rivaling  a  fine  needle  in  size,  which  I  had  reared 
in  boxes  round  my  cabin  stove.  All  our  messes  in 
either  ship  were  supplied  with  an  eitra  pound  of  real 
English  fresh  beef,  which  had  been  hanging  at  our 
quarter  for  eighteen  months.  We  could  not  afibrd  to 
teave  it  for  a  filler  trial  of  keeping,  but  I  have  no  doubt 
that  double  the  period  would  not  have  quite  spoiled  its 
•fiavor." 

This  winter  proved  much  more  severe  than  the  for- 
mer. Additmnal  clothing  was  found  neeelfe^.  The 
stove  funmira  collected  a  quantity  of  ice  within  them, 
notwithstanding  fires  were  kept  up  night  and  day,  so 
that  it  was  frequently  requi^te  to  take  them  down  in 
order  to  break  and  melt  the  ice  out  of  them. 

Nothing  was  seen  of  the  sun  for  forty-two  days. 

On  the  15th  of  April,  Mr.  A.  Elder,  Greenland  mate 
of  the  Hecla,  died  of  dropsy:  he  had  been  leading  man 
with  Parry  on  Boss's  voyi^e,  and  for  his  good  conduct 
.Yas  made  mate  of  the  Gnper,  on  the  last  expedition. 

On  the  6th  of  September,  1828,  Mr.  George  Fife,  the 
gtUot,  also  died  of  scurvy. 


»ijaiY*A  noQim  tovaml 


AAur  tftkinc  •  review  of  their  iifOvitioiie>  and  the 
protiability  of  iiarlng  to  nast  a  thira  winter  here,  Gapt 
Parry  determined  to  send  the  Hecla  home,  takinj]^  from 
Iter  all  the  provision  that  could  be  spared.  Little  or 
no  hopes  eonld  be  entertained  of  any  passage  being 
found  to  the  westward,  otherwise  than  by  the  strait  now 
so  firmly  closed  with  ice ,  but  Parry  trusted  that  some 
interestinff  additions  miffht  be  made  to  the  geography 
of  these  dreary  regions,  Dy  attempting  a  {MwMge  to  the 
northward  or  eastward,  in  hooes  of  finding  an  outlet  to 
Lancaster  Sound,  or  Prince  ICegent's  Inlet 

On  the  21st  of  April,  1828,  they  began  transshipping 
the  provisions;  the  teams  of  dogs  being  found  most 
useful  ibr  this  purpose.  Even  two  anchors  of  22  cwt 
each,  were  drawn  by  these  noble  animals  at  a  quick 
trot. 

Upon  admittinff  daylight  at  the  stem  windows  of  the 
Hecla,  on  the  22a,  the  gloomy,  sooty  cabin  showed  to 
no  great  advantage ;  no  less  than  ten  buckets  of  ice  were 
taken  from  the  sashes  and  out  of  the  stem  lockers,  from 
which  Jitter  some  spare  flannels  and  instraments  were 
only  liberated  by  chopping. 

On  the  7th  ot'  June,  Captain  Lyon,  with  a  party  of 
men,  set  off  across  the  MelviUe  Peninsula,  to  endeavor 
to  get  a  sight  of  the  western  sea,  of  i||fk^h  they  had  re- 
ceived descriptive  accounts  from  thenatives,  but  ow- 
ing to  the  dimculties  of  traveling,  and  the  ranges  of 
mountains  they  met  with,  they  returned  unsuccessful, 
after  being  out  twenty  days.  Another  Up°^  ^P  ^^  ^ 
fortnight  rollowed. 

^  On  the  Ist  of  August,  the  Hecla  was  reported  ready 
for  sea.  Some  symptoms  of  scurvy  having  again  made 
their  appearance  in  the  ships,  and  the  surgeons  report- 
ing that  it  would  not  be  prudent  to  contimie  longer. 
Captain  Parry  reluctantiy  aetermined  to  proceed  home 
witn  both  ships.  After  being  319  days  in  their  winter 
quarters,  the  ships  got  away  on  the  9th  of  August. 

A  conspicuous  landmark,  with  disj^atches,  was  set 
up  on  the  main-land,  for  the  information  of  FrankUn, 
should  he  roach  thie  nnarter. 


I9B 


PRod»i!ii  bF'^iRcno  DftcofEBT. 


•  'On  reftohing  Winter  Island,  and  risiting;  their  las 
year's  garden,  radishes,  mnstard  and  cress,  and  onion* 
were  brought  off,  which  had  survived  the  winter  and 
were  still  alive,  seventeen  months  from  the  time  they 
were  planted,  a  very  remarkable  proof  of  their  having 
been  preserved  by  the  warm  covering  of  snow. 

The  ships,  during  the  whole  of  this  passage,  were 
driven  by  the  current  more  than  three  degrees,  entirely 
at  the  mercy  of  the  ice,  being  carried  into  every  bight, 
and  swept  over  each  point,  without  the  power  of  help- 
ing themselves. 

On  the  Ist  of  September,  they  were  driven  up  Lyon 
Inlet,  where  they  were  confinea  high  up  till  the  6th, 
when  a  breeze  sprung  up,  which  took  tnem  down  to 
within  three  miles  of  Winter  Island ;  still  it  was  not 
until  the  12th,  that  they  got  thoroughly  clear  of  the  in- 
draught. The  danger  and  suspense  of  these  twelve 
days  were  horrible,  and  Lyon  justly  observes,  that  he 
would  prefer  being  frozen  up  during  another  eleven 
months^  winter,  to  ^ain  passing  so  anxious  a  period 
of  time.  *  * 

"  Ten  of  the  twelve  nights  were  passed  on  deck,  in 
expectation,  each  tide,  of  some  decided  change  in  our 
aflairs,  either  by  being  left  on  the  rocks,  or  grounding 
in  such  shoal  ^^i^,  that  the  whole  body  of  the  ice  must 
have  slid  over  u^.  But,  as  that  good  old  seaman  BafHn 
expresses  himself,  *  God,  who  is  greater  than  either  ice 
or  tide,  always  delivered  us  I ' " 
g  For  thirtydjpre  da^s  the  ships  had  been  beset,  and  in 
that  period  bad  driven  with  the  ice  above  800  miles, 
without  any  exertion  on  their  part,  and  also  without  a 
possibility  of  extricating  themselves.  On  the  23d  of 
Beptemberj  they  once  more  got  into  the  swell  of  the 
Atlantic,  and  on  the  10th  of  October,  arrived  at  Ler- 
wick, in  Shetland. 

t' 

Cijlvering's  Voyage  to  Spfizberuen  and  Qreen-^ 
,;  LAND,  1823. 

In  1823,  Capt.  Sabine,  E.  A.,  who  had  been  for  some 
time  engaged  in  magnetic  observations,  and  also  ii> 


OL.iy EOUKO'S  VOTACafc .  s  .Tilsit 


im 


-^ 


experiments  to  detennine  the  conii^uxatton  of  tiie  earth, 
by  means  of  pendulum  vibrations  in  different  latitudes, 
having  perfected  his  observations  at  di£ferent  points, 
Irom  tne  Equator  to  the  Arctic  Circle,  suggested  to  the 
Royal  Society,  through  Sir  Humphry  Davy,  the  impor- 
tance of  extending  smiilar  expenments  into  higher  lat- 
itudes toward  the  role.  Accordingly,  the  government 
placed  at  his  disposal  H.  M.  S.  Griper,  120  tons,  Com- 
mander Clavering,  which  was  to  convey  him  to  Spitz- 
bereen,  and  thence  to  the  east  coast  of  Greenland. 

fie  Griper  sailed  from  the  Nore,  on  the  11th  of  May, 
and  proceeded  to  Hammerfest,  or  Whale  Island,  near 
the  Korth  Cape,  in  Norway,  which  she  I'eached  on  the 
4th  of  June,  and  Capt.  Sabine  having  finished  his  shore 
observations  b^  the  23d,  the  vessel  set  sail  for  Bpitzber* 
gen.  She  fell  in  with  ice  off  Cherry  Island,  in  lat.  75° 
5',  on  the  27th,  and  on  the  30th  disembarked  the  tents 
and  instruments  on  dne  of  the  small  islands  round 
Hakluyt's  Headland,  near  the  eightieth  parallel.  Capt. 
Clavering,  meanwhile,  sailed  in  the  Griper  due  north, 
and  reached  the  latitude  of  80°  20',  where  being  stop- 
ped by  dose  packed  ice,  he  was  obliged  to  return. 

On  the  24th  of  Julv,  they  again  put  to  sea,  directing 
their  course  for  the  highest  known  point  of  the  eastern 
coast  of  Greenland.  Thev  met  with  many  fields  of  ice, 
and  made  the  land,  whicn  had  a  mofllpiserable,  deso- 
late appearancejat  a  point  which  was  named  Cape  Bor* 
lase  Warren.  Two  islands  were  discovered,  and  as 
Capt.  Sabine  here  landed  and  carried  onhis  observa* 
tions,  they  were  called  Pendulum  IslandP  From  an 
island  situate  in  lat.  75°  12',  to  which  he  gave  the  nam« 
of  Shannon  Island,  Clavering  saw  high  land,  stretch- 
ing due  north  as  far  as  lat.  76°. 

On  the  16th  of  August,  Clavering  landed  with  a 
party  of  three  oflScers,  and  sixteen  men  on  the  main- 
land, to  examine  the  shores.  The  temperature  did  not 
sink  below  23°,  and  they  slept  for  nearly  a  fortnight 
they  were  on  shore  with  only  a  boat-cloak  and  blanket 
for  a  covering,  without  feeling  any  inconvenience  from 
the  cold.    A  tribe  of  twelve  Esquimaux  was  met  with 


%■' 


PB0GB£8B  OF  AB<JriO  DUCUVBBT. 


here.  They  reached  in  their  journey  amagniiiceuf 
inlety  about  fifty  miles  in  circumlerence,  which  was  sup- 
posed to  be  the  same  which  Gale  Hamkes  discovered 
m  1654,  and  which  bears  his  name.  The  mountains 
roimd  its  sides  were  4000  to  6000  feet  high.  On  the 
29th  of  August,  they  returned  on  board,  and  having 
embarked  the  tents  and  instruments,  the  ship  again  set 
sail  on  the  Slst,  keeping  the  coast  in  view  to  Cape 
Parry,  lat.  72i°.  The  diffs  were  observed  to  be  sev- 
eral thousand  feet  high.  On  the  13th  of  September, 
as  the  ice  in  shore  began  to  get  very  troublesome,  the 
ship  stood  out  to  sea,  and  after  encountering  a  very 
heavy  gale,  which  drove  them  with  great  fury  to  the 
southward,  and  it  not  being  thought  prudent  to  make 
for  Ireland,  a  station  in  about  the  same  latitude  on  the 
Norway  coast  was  chosen  instead  by  Capt.  Sabine. 
They  made  the  land  about  the  latitude  of  Christian- 
sound.  On  the  1st  of  October,  the  Griper  struck  hard 
on  a  sunken  rock,  but  got  oft'  undamaged.  ** 

On  the  6th,  they  anchored  in  Drontheim  Fiord, 
where  they  were  received  with  much  kindness  and  hos- 
pitality, and  after  the  necessary  observations  fifed  been 
completed  the  ship  proceeded  homeward,  and  reached 
Deptford  on  the  19th  of  December,  1823.  -^^ 

Lt^PpVotage  in  the  Griper. 

In  1824,  three  expeditions  were  ordered  out,  to  carry 
on  simultaneous  operations  in  Arctic  discovery.  To 
Capt.  Lyon.|Ms  committed  the  task  of  examining  and 
completing  me  survey  of  the  Melville  Peninsula,  the 
adjoining  straits,  and  the  shores  of  Arctic  America,  if 
possible  as  far  as  Franklin's  turning  point.  Capt.  Lyon 
was  therefore  gazetted  to  the  Gnper  gun-brig,  which 
had  taken  out  Capt.  Sabine  to  Spitzbergen,  in  the  pre- 
vious year.  The  following  oflficers  and  ciow  were  also 
appointed  to  her  : — 

Griper,  \v 

Captain  —  G.F.Lyon. 
iv.'    Lieutenants — ]^.  Manico  and  F.  Harding. 


,«J  •■..w. 


liTON'S  VOYAGE. 


^•v*^  >i,  »  i  W  *t 


IM 


AdfiiBtant^nrveyor—E.  N.  KendaL 
Purser —  J.  Evans. 
Assistant-Surgeon — W.  LejsoB. 
Midshipman^ —  J.  Tom. 
34  Petty  Officers,  Seamen,  &o.  .        ■    £> 

^  Total  complement,  41. 

It  was  not  till  the  20th  of  June,  that  the  Griper  got 
hway  from  England,  being  a  full  month  later  than  the 
usual  period  of  departure,  and  the  vessel  was  at  the 
best  but  an  old  tub  in  her  sailing  propensities.  A  small 
tender,  caUed  the  Snap,  was  ordered  to  accompanjr  her 
with  stores,  as  far  as  the  ice,  and  having  been  relieved 
of  her  supplies,  she  was  sent  home  on  reaching  Hud- 
son's Straits. 

The  Griper  made  but  slow  process  in  her  deeply  la- 
den state,  ner  crowded  decks  bemg  continually  swept 
by  heavy  seas,  and  it  was  not  until  the  end  of  August, 
that  she  rounded  the  southern  head  of  Southampton 
Island,  and  stood  up  toward  SirJ?homaB  Roe's  Wei 
come.  On  reaching  the  entranced  this  channel  they 
encountered  a  terrific  gale,  which  for  a  lonjg  time 
threatened  the  destruction  of  both  ship  ancT  crew. 
Drifting  with  this,  they  brought  up  the  ship  with  four 
anchors,  in  a  bay  with  five  rathoms  and  a  naif  water, 
in  the  momentary  expectation  that  with  the  ebb  tide 
the  ship  would  take  the  ground,  as  the  sea  broke  fear- 
fully on  a  low  sandy  beach  just  astern,  and  had  the  an- 
chor parted,  nothing  could  have  saved  the  vessel. 
Neither  commander  nor  crew  had  been  inll^d  for  three 
nights,  and  although  little  hope  was  entertained  of  sur- 
viving the  gale,  and  no  boat  could  live  in  such  a  sea, 
the  officers  and  crew  performed  their  several  duties 
with  their  accustomed  coolness.  Each  man  was  or- 
dered to  put  on  his  warmest  clothing,  and  to  take  chnrge 
of  some  useful  instrument.  The  scene  is  best  described 
in  tlie  words  of  the  gallant  commander  : — 

"Each,  therefore,  brought  his  bag  on  deck,  and 
dressed  himself;  and  in  the  fine  athletic  forms  which 
stood  exposed  before  me,  I  did  not  see  one  muscle  qui- 


m^ 


PBOOKUSS  OV   4SCTIC  OI800TEBY. 


ver,  nor  the  slightett  sign  of  alann.  Prayers  were  read, 
*  and  they  then  all  sat  down  in  groups,  i^eltered  from  the 
wash  of  the  sea  by  wlutever  they  could  find,  and  some 
endeavored  to  obtain  a  little  sleeps  Never,  perhaps 
was  witnessed  a  finer  scene  than  on  the  deck  of  mj 
little  ship,  when  all  hope  of  life  had  left  us.  Koble  is 
the  character  of  the  British  sailor  is  always  allowed  to 
b6  in  cases  of  danger,  yet  I  did  not  believe  it  to  be  pos- 
sible that  among  tbrty-one  persons  not  one  repining 
word  should  have  been  uttered.  Each  was  at  peace 
with  his  neighbor  and  all  th6  world  ;  and  I  am  nrmly 
persuaded  mat  the  resignation  which  was  then  shown 
to  the  will  of  the  Almighty,  was  the  means  of  obtain- 
ing His  mercy.  God  was  merciful  to  us,  and  the  tide, 
almost  miraculously,  fell  no  lower."  The  appropriate 
name  of  the  Bay  of  God's  Mercy  has  been  given  to 
this  spot  on  the  charts  by  Captain  Lyon.   ^ 

Proceeding  onward  up  the  "Welcome,  they  encoun- 
tered, about  a  fortnight  later,  another  fearful  storm. 
On  the  12th  of  Seplj^ber,  when  off  the  entrance  of 
"Wager  Inlet,  it  blew  so  hard  for  two  days,  that  on  the 
13th  the  ship  was  driven  from  her  anchors,  and  carried 
away  by  the  fury  of  the  gale,  with  every  prospect  of 
being  momentarily  dashed  to  pieces  against  any  hid- 
den rock;  but  the  same  good  Providence  which  had 
60  recently  bemended  them,  again  stood  their  protec- 
tor. On  consulting  with  his  officers,  it  was  unani- 
mously resolved,  that  in  the  crippled  state  of  the  ship, 
without  an^anchor,  and  with  her  compasses  Tt^rse 
than  useles^t  would  be  madnesa  to  continue  tlie  voy- 
age, and  the  ship's  course  was  therefore  shaped  for 
England. 

Imay  observe,  that  the  old  Griper  is  now  laid  up  as 
a  hiiUc  in  Chichester  Harbor,  furnishing  a  residence 
and^epot  for  the  coast  guard  station. 


b 


Pabey's  Third  Voyage. 


Im"  the  spring  of  1824  the  Admiralty  determined  to 
give  Oapt.  Parry  another  opportunity  of  carrying  ox  t 


to 
ort 


wfe^ 


the  great  problem  which  had  so  long  been  Bonght  af- 
ter, of  a  northwest  passage  to  the  Pacific,  and  bo  gen-^ 
erally  esteemed  was  this  gallant  commander  that  he 
had  but  to  hoist  his  pennant,  when  fearlejss  of  all  dan< 
gcr,  and  in  a  noble  spirit  of  emulation,  his  former  as^ 
aociates  rallied  around  him. 

The  same  two  ships  were  employed  as  before,  bui 
Parry  now  selected  the  Hecla  for  his  pennant.  The 
etaff  of  officers  and  men  was  as  follows : — 

*  Hecla, 

Captain — "W.  E.  Parry. 

•  Lieutenants — J.  L.  Wynn,  Joseph  Sherer,  and 

H^nry  Foster. 
Surgeon — Samuel  Neill,  M.  D. 
.  Purser — TV.  H.  Hooper. 
Assistant  Surgeon  —  W .  Rowland. 
Midshipmen  —  J.  Bninton,  F.  R.  M.  Crozier,  C. 

Eicbards,  and  II.  N.  Head«| 
Greenland    Pilots  —  J.  AUiJIb,  master;    and  G. 

Champion,  mate. 
4D  Petty  Officers,  Seamen,  and  Marines. 
Total  complement,  62. 

\  ■  '   '■    '  Futy. 

Commander  —  H.  P.  Hoppner. 

^eutenants  —  H.  T.  Austin  and  J.  0.  BoH. 

Surgeon — A.  M'Laren.  ^ 

Purser— J.  Halse.  f 

Assistant  Surgeon  —  T.  Bell. 

Midshipmen  — B.  "Westropp,  0.  C.  Waller,  and  E. 

Bird. 
Clerk — TV.  Mogg. 

Greenland  Pilots— G.  Crawford,  master;  T.  t)on 
l^ldson,  mate. 
1 48  Betty  Officers,  Seamen,  and  Marines. 
Total  complement,  60. 

^  The  "William  Harris,  transport,  was  commiBiione<J 
U)  a^ompany  the  ships  to  the  ice  \yith   ptovisiotid! 

'  F 


* 


1S3 


w 


PE0GBEB3  OF   AECTIJ   DISCOVEKT. 


^mone  the  promotions  made,  it  will  be  seen,  were 
Lieut.  Hoppner  to  the  rank  of  Commander,  and  second 
in  command  of  the  expedition.  Messrs.  J.  Sherer, 
and  J.  C.  Boss  to  be  Lieutenants,  and  J.  Halse  to  be 
Pnrser.  The  attempt  on  this  occasion  was  to  be  made 
by  Lancaster  Sound  through  Barrow's  Strait  to  Prince 
Regent  Inlet.  The  ships  sailed  on  the  19th  of  May, 
1824,  and  a  month  afterward  fell  in  with  the  body  of 
the  ico  in  lat.  601°.  After  transhipping  the  stores  to 
the  two  vcbsels,  and  sending  home  the  transport,  about 
the  middle  of  July  they  were  close  beset  with  the  ice 
in  Baffin's  Bay,  and  "from  this  time  (says  Parry)  the 
obstructions  from  the  quantity,  magnitude,  and  close- 
ness of  the  ice,  which  were  such  as  to  keep  our  people 
almost  constantly  employed  in  heaving,  warping,  or 
sawing  through  it;  and  yet  with  so  little  success  that, 
at  the  close  of  July,  we  had  only  penetrated  seventh- 
miles  to  the  westward."  After  encountering  a  severe 
gale  on  the  1st  of  Au^st,  by  which  masses  of  overlay- 
ing ice  were  driven  c%  upon  the  other,  the  Hecla  was 
laid  on  her  broadside  by  a  strain,  which  Parry  says 
must  inevitably  have  crushed  a  vessel  of  ordinary 
strength ;  they  got  clear  of  the  chief  obstructions  by 
the  first  week  in  September.  During  the  whole  of 
August  they  had  not  one  day  Fufficiently  free  from 
rain,  snow,  or  sleet,  to  be  able  to  air  the  bedding  of 
the  .  hip's  company.  .^ 

They  enterea  Lancaster  Sound  on  the  10th  of  ^p- 
tember,  and  with  the  exception  of  a  solitary  berg  or 
two  found  it  clear  of  ice.  A  few  days  after,  however, 
they  fell  in  with  the  young  ice,  which  increasing  daily 
in  thickness,  the  ships  became  beset, -and  by  the  cur- 
rent which  set  to  the  east  at  the  rate  of  three  miles  an 
hour^they  were  soon  drifted  back  to  the  eastward  of 
Adniiralty  Inlet,  and  on  the  23d  they  found  th^ 
selves  again  off  WoUaston  Island,  at  tne  en*;r|i|  ^ 
Navy  Board  Inlet.  By  perseverance,  ho\7ever3l 
aid  of  a  strong  easterly  breeze,  they  once  more  ifi';!- 
aged  to  recover  their  lost  ground,  and  on  the  ^tS 
reftched>.the  entrance  of  Port  Bowen  en  th^  eaftterii 


^ 


^m 


^AKKY'S  TUUa>  WYAOIL^fnn 


Ida 


tern 


Bhore  of  Prince  Regout  Inlet,  and  here  Parry  resolved 
upon  wintering;  this  making  the  fourth  winter  this 
enterprising  commander  had  passed  in  these  inhospi" 
table  seas. 

The  usual  laborious  process  of  cutting  canals  had  to 
be  resorted  to,  in  order  to  get  the  ships  near  to  the 
shore  in  secure  and  shelter^  situations.  Parry  thus 
describes  the  dreary  monotonous  character  of  an  arctic 
winter ;  — 

"It  is  hard  to  conceive  any  one  thins  more  like 
another  than  two  winters  passed  in  the  higher  latitudes 
of  the  polar  regions,  except  when  variety  happens  to 
be  afforded  by  intercourse  with  some  other  branch  of 
the  whole  family  of  man.  Winter  after  winter,  nature 
here  assumes  an  aspect  so  much  alike,  that  cursory  ob- 
servation can  scarcely  detect  a  single  feature  of  variety. 
The  winter  of  more  temperate  climates,  and  even  m 
some  of  no  slight  severity,  is  occasionally  diversified 
by  a  thaw,  which  at  once  gives  varietv  and  compara- 
tive cheerfulness  to  the  prospect.  But  here,  when  once 
tJiie  earth  is  covered,  all  is  dreary  monotonous  white- 
ness, not  merely  for  days  or  weeks,  but  for  more  than 
half  a  year  together.  Whichever  way  the  eye  is  turn- 
ed, it  meets  a  picture  calculated  to  impress  upon  the 
mind  an  idea  of  inanimate  stillness,  of  that  motionless 
torpor  with  which  our  feelings  have  nothing  congenial ; 
of  any  thing,  in  short,  but  life.  In  the  very  silence 
there  is  a  deadness  with  which  a  human  spectator  ap- 
pe^s  out  of  keeping.  The  presence  of  man  seems  an 
intrusion  on  the  dreary  solitude  of  this  wintry  desert, 
which  even  its  native  animals  have  for  awhile  forsaken." 

During  this  year  Parry  tells  us  the  thermometer  re- 
mained below  zero  131  days,  and  did  not  rise  above 
that  point  till  the  11th  of  April.  The  sun,  which  had 
been  absent^om  their  view  121  days,  again  T^lessed 
the  crews  "vpih  his  rays  on  the  22d  of  February.  Du- 
ring this  long  imprisonment,  schools,  scientific  observa- 
tions, walking  parties,  &c.,  were  resorted  to,  but  "  our 
former  amusements,"  says  Parry,  "  being  almost  worn 
threadbare,  it  required  some  ingenuity  to  devise  any 


.i*-,- J" 


^«r 


♦'  ■>•, 


i 


FK00B18S  OF   ABOTIO   DUOUVEAY. 


ft 


should  possess  the  charm  of  novelty  to  r^^ 
it.*'  A  happy  idea  was,  however,  hit  upon  by 


t34 

\t\«n  that 

3«)mmend 

Commander  Hoppner,'  at  whose  snggefition  a  monthly 

bal  masque  was  held,  to  the  great  diversion  of  both 

officers  and  men,  to  the  number  of  1^.    The  populai 

commander  entered  gavly  into  their  recreations,  and 

thus  spei^  of  these  polar  masquerades  i^-^ 

^*'  It  is  impossible  that  any  idea  could  have  proved 
more  happy,  or  more  exactly  suited  to  our  situation 
Admiralty  dressed  characters  of  various  descriptions 
readilv  took  their  parts,  and  many  of  these  were  sup- 
ported with  a  degree  of  spirit  and  genuine  good  humor 
which  would  not  nave  disgraced  a  more  renned  ashcm- 
bly ;  while  the  latter  might  not  hav«  been  disgraced 
by  copying  the  good  order,  decorum,  and  inonensive 
cheerfulness  which  our  humble  masquerades  presented. 
It  does  especial  credit  to  the  dispositions  and  good 
sense  of  our  men,  that  though  all  the  officers  entered 
fully  into  the  spirit  of  these  amusements,  which  took 
place  once>^  tbonth  alternately  on  board  of  each  ship, 
no  instance  occurred  of  any  thing  that  could  interfere 
with  the  regular  discipline,  or  at  all  weaken  the  respect 
of  the  men  toward  their  superiors.  Ours  were  mas 
querades  without  licentiousness  —  carnivals  without 
excess^** 

Exj^oring  parties  were  sent  out  in  several  directions. 
Commander  Hoppner  and  his  party  went  inland,  and 
after  a  fortnight's  fatiguing  journey  over  a  mountain- 
ous, barren,  and  desolate  country,  where  precipitoufra- 
vines  500  feet  deep  obstructed  their  passage,  traveled 
a  degree  and  three-quarters  • — to  the  latitude  of  73°  19', 
but  saw  no  appearance  of  sea  from  thence. 

Lieutenant  Sherer,  with  four  men,  proceeded  to  the 
southward,  and  made  a  careful  survey  of  the  coast  as 
far  as  tfii*,  but  had  not  provisions  sufficient  to  go 
round  Cape  Kater,  the  southernmost  poin%)bserved  m 
their  former  voyage. 

Lieutenant  J.  C.  Boss,  with  a  similar  party^-traveled 
to  the  northward,  alone  the  coast  of  the  Inlet,  and  from 
th^hills  about  Cape  Yorkj  observed  that  the  sea  was 


"^g 


r 


% 


^'' 


■  ...-.lay  feaSV^    .....  ^^j^ 


■  ^ 


.HHTPABRY^S  TBISD  TOTAOE. 


*'i 


las 


perfectly  op«)n  and  free  from  ice  at  the  distance  of 
twenty-two  niiles  from  the  ships. 

After  an  imprisonment  of  about  ten  months,  by  nreat 
exertions  the  ships  were  got  clear  from  the  ice,  a.  on 
the  20th  of  July,  1825,  upon  the  separation  of  the  iloe 
across  the  harbor,  towed  out  to  sea.  Parry  then  made 
for  tlie  western  shore  of  the  Inlet,  being  desirous  of  ex- 
amining the  coast  of  Korth  Somerset  tor  any  channel 
that  might  occur,  a  probability  which  later  discoveries 
in  that  quarter  have  proved  to  be  without  foundation. 
On  the  28th,  when  well  in  with  the  western  shore,  the 
Hecla,  in  spite  of  every  exertion,  was  beset  by  floating 
ice,  and  after  breaking  two  large  ice  anchors  in  en- 
deavoring to  heave  in  snore,  was  obliged  to  give  up  the 
effort  and  drift  with  the  ice  until  the  80th.  On  the 
following  day,  a  heavy  gale  came  on,  in  which  the 
Hecla  carried  away  three  hawsers,  while  the  Fury  was 
driven  on  shore,  but  was  hove  off  at  high  water.  Both 
ships  were  now  drifted  by  the  body  of  the  ice  down  the 
Inlet,  and  took  the  gi'ound,  the  Fury  being  so  nipped 
and  strained  that  she  leaked  a  great  deal,  and  four 
pumps  kept  constantly  at  work  did  not  keep  hdr  clear 
of  water.  They  were  floated  oft'  at  high* water,  but, 
late  on  the  2nd  of  August,  the  hu^e  masses  of  ice  once 
more  forced  the  Fury  on  shore,  and  the  Hecla  narrowly 
escaped.  On  examining  her  and  getting  he^*  off,  il 
Was  found  that  she  must  oe  hove  down  and  re]paired  ; 
a^basin  was  therefore  formed  for  her  reception  and 
completed  by  the  16th,  a  mile  further  to  the  southward, 
within  three  icebergs  grounded,  where  there  were  three 
or  four  fathoms  of  water.  Into  this  basin  she  was 
taken  on  the  18th,  and  her  stores  and  provisions  being 
removed,  she  was  hove  down,  but  a  gale  of  wind  com- 
ing on  and  destroying  the  masses  of  ice  which  shel- 
tered her,  it  became  necessary  to  re-embark  the  stores, 
&c.,  and  once  more  put  to  sea ;  but  the  unfortunate 
vessel  had  hardly  got  out  of  her  harbor  before,  on  the 
21st,  she  wai  again  diiven  on  shore.  After  a  careful 
survey  and  examination,  it  was  found  necessary  to 
abandon  her  :  Parry's  opinion  being  thus  expressed  — 


%ir: 


186 


PB00SE8S  OF  ASCTIO  DISOOTEBT. 


0 


**  Every  endeavor  of  ours  to  get  her  oflf,  or  if  got  oflf,  to 
float  her  to  any  known  place  of  safety,  womd  be  at 
once  utterly  hopeless  in  itself,  and  productive  of  ex- 
treme risk  to  our  remaining  ship." 

The  loss  of  this  ship,  and  the  crowded  state  of  the 
remaining  vessel,  made  it  impossible  to  think  of  con- 
tinuing the  voyage  for  the  purposes  of  discovery. 

^^  The  incessant  labor,  the  constant  state  of  anxiety, 
and  the  frequent  and  imminent  danger  into  which  the 
surviving  ship  was  thrown,  in  the  attempts  to  save  her 
comrade,  which  were  continued  for  twenty-five  days, 
destroyed  every  reasonable  expectation  hitherto  cher- 
ished of  the  ultimate  accomplishment  of  this  object." 

Taking  advantage  of  a  northerly  wind,  on  the  27th 
the  Hecla  stretched  across  the  inlet  for  the  eastern 
coast,  meeting  with  little  obstruction  from  the  ice,  and 
anchored  in  JSTeill's  Harbor,  a  short  distance  to  tSa 
southward  of  their  winter  quarters.  Port  Bowen,  whero 
the  ship  was  got  ready  for  crossing  the  Atlantic. 

The  Hecla  put  to  sea  on  the  3l8t  of  August,  and  en- 
tering Barrow's  Strait  on  the  1st  of  September,  found 
it  perfectly  clear  of  ice.  In  Lancaster  Sound,  a  very 
large  number  of  bergs  were  seen  ;  but  they  found  an 
open  sea  in  Baffin's  Say,  till,  on  the  7th  of  September, 
when  in  latitude  75°  30',  they  came  to  tho  margin  of 
*^he  Iceland  soon  entered  a  clear  channel  on  its  eastern 
side.  iFrom  thirty  to  forty  large  icebergs,  not  less  than 
200  feet  in  height,  were  sighted. 

On  the  12th  of  October,  Captain  Parry  landed  ^at 
Peterhead,  and  the  Hecla  arrived  at  Sheemess  on  the 
20th.  But  one  man  died  during  this  voyage — John 
Page,  a  seaman  of  the  Fury  —  who  died  of  scurvy,  in 
Neill's  Harbor,  on  the  29th  of  August. 

This  voyage  cannot  but  be  considered  the  most  unsuc- 
cessful of  the  three  made  by  Parry,  whether  as  regards 
the  information  gleaned  on  the  subject  of  a  northwest 
passage,  or  the  extension  of  our  store  of  geographical 
or  scientific  knowledge.  The  shores  of  tY&  inlet  were 
more  naked,  barren,  and  desolate  than  even  Melville 
Island.    With  the  exception  of  some  hundreds  of  white 


>\ 


M 


riUNKUM^B  SfiCO|(D  SXCJEDXTXON. 


wbalos,  seen  sportinx  about  the  southernmost  irt  of 
the  Inlet  that  was  viftited,  few  other  species  of  animals 
were  seen. 

"  We  have  scarcely,"  says  Parry, "  ever  visited  a  coast 
on  which  so  little  ot  aoimal  life  occurs.  For  days  to- 
gether only  one  or  two  seals,  a  single  sea-horse,  and 
now  and  then  a  flock  of  ducks  were  seen." 

Pie  still  clinffs  to  the  accomplishment  of  the  great 
object  of  a  northwest  passage.  At  page  184  of  his  offi- 
cial narrative,  he  savs: — 

''  I  feel  conndent  that  the  undertaking,  if  it  be  deemed 
advisable  at  any  future  time  to  pursue  it,  will  one  da^ 
or  otheir  be  accomplished  ;  for — setting  aside  the  acci- 
dents to  which,  from  their  very  nature,  such  attempts 
must  be  liable,  as  well  as  other  un&vorable  circum- 
stances which  human  foresight  can  never  guard  against, 
or  human  power  control — I  cannot  but  believe  it  to 
be  an  enterprise  well  within  the  reasonable  limits  of 
practicability.  It  may  be  tried  often  and  fail,  for  seve- 
ral favorable  and  fortunate  circumstances  must  be  com- 
bined for  its  accomplishment ;  but  I  believe,  neverthe- 
less, that  it  will  ultimately  be  accomplished."     t 

^*  I  am  much  mistaken,  indeed,"  he  adds,  "  if  the 
northwest  passage  ever  becomes  the  business  of  a  single 
summer ;  nay,  i  believe  that  nothing  but  a  concurrence 
of  very  favorable  circumstances  is  Skely  ever  to  make 
a  single  winter  in  the  ice  sufficient  for  its  accoQ^^h- 
ment.  But  there  is  no  argument  against  the  ^ssimlity 
of  final  success ;  for  we  Imow  that  a  winter  m  the  ice 
may  be  passed  not  only  in  safety,  but  in  health  and 
comfort." 

Not  one  winter  alone,  but  two  and  three  have  been 
passed  with  health  and  safety  in  these  seas,  under  a 
wise  and  careful  commander. 

4. 


Fbanklin's  Sbco2jd  ExpEornoN,  1825-26. 


..■iis 


JJnumontkd  bv  the  hardships  and  sufferings  he  had 
encountered  in  nis  previous  travels  with  a  noble  spirit 
of  ardor  and  ^^nthusi^m,  Qi^t^ii^  Franklin  determ^i^d 


# 


t^ 


TKOOIOM  or  AROTIO  DIfl<X>TSBff . 


to  protecote  the  chain  of  Ws  fbnner  discoyeries  from 
llie  Coppermine  river  to  the  mosi  weBtem  point  of  the 
Arctic  regions.  A  sea  expedition,  under  the  command 
of  Captam  Beechey  was  at  the  same  time  sent  round 
Cape  Horn  to  Behnng's  Straits,  to  co-operate  with  Parry 
and  Franklin,  so  as  to  furnish  nrovisions  to  the  formA*, 
and  a  conveyance  homo  to  the  latter. 

Captain  Franklin's  offer  was  therefore  accepted  by 
the  government,  and  leaving  Liverpool  in  February, 
1825,  he  arrived  at  New  York  about  the  middle  of 
March.  The  officers  under  his  orders  were  his  old  and 
tried  companions  and  fellow  sufferers  in  the  former  jou^ 
ney^Dr.  Eichardson  and  Lieutenant  Back,  with  Mr. 
E.  N.  Kendal,  a  mate  in  the  navy,  who  had  been  out  in 
the  Griper  with  Capt.  Lyon,  and  Mr.  T.  Drummond,  a 
naturalist.  Four  boats,  specially  prepared  for  the  pur- 
poses of  the  expedition,  were  sent  out  by  the  Hudson's 
Bav  Company's  ship. 

In  July,  1825,  the  party  arrived  at  Fort  Chipewyan. 
It  is  unnecessary  to  go  over  the  ground  and  follow  them 
in  their  northern  journey;  suffice  it  to  say,  they  reached 
Great  Sear  Lake  in  safety,  and  erected  a  winter  dwell- 
ing on  its  western  shore,  to  which  the  name  of  Fort 
Franklin  was  given.  To  Back  and  Mr.  Dease,  an  uffi* 
cer  in  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's  service,  were  in- 
trust^ the  arrangements  for  their  winter  quarters. 

FtiHi  here  a  small  party  set  out  with  Franklin  down 
the^iMackenzie  to  examine  the  state  of  the  Polar  Sea. 
On  the  6th  of  September  they  got  back  to  their  com- 
panions, and  prepared  to  pass  the  long  winter  of  seven 
or  eight  months. 

•  On  the  28th  of  June,  1826,  the  season  being  suffi- 
fciently  advanced,  and  all  their  preparations  completed, 
the  whole  party  got  away  in  four  boats  to  descend  the 
Mackenzie  to  the  Tolar  Sea.  Where  the  river  branches 
off  into  several  channels,  the  party  separated  on  the  3d 
of  July,  Captain  Franklin  and  Lieutenant  Back,  with 
two  boats  and  fourteen  men,  having  wi^  them  the 
faithful  Esquimaux  interpreter,  Augustus,  who  had 
been  with  them  on  the  former  expedition,  proceeded  ti> 


m 


m 


ntAMKUMS  BKCOND  BXPKDlTKkN. 


189 


the  westward,  while  Dr.  liichardson  and  Mr.  Kendal 
in  the  other  two  boats,  having  ten  men  under  their 
command,  let  out  in  an  easterly  direction,  to  search 
the  Coppermine  River. 

Franklin  arrived  at  the  month  of  the  Mackenzie  on 
the  7tli  of  July,  where  he  oncountored  a  large  tribo  of 
iicrce  £squiinaux,  who  pillaged  his  boats,  and  it  was 
only  by  great  cantion,  pntdeuoo  and  ibrbearance,  tliat 
the  whole  pai'ty  wore  not  massacred.  After  getting  the 
boats  afloat,  and  clear  of  theso  unpleasant  visitors, 
Franklin  pursued  his  survey,  n  most  tedious  and  diiti- 
cult  one,  ior  more  than  a  month ;  he  was  only  able  to 
r(!ach  a  point  in  latitude  70*"  24'  N.,  longitude  140°  37' 
W.,  to  which  Backus  name  was  given  ;  and  here  pru- 
dence obliged  him  to  return,  although,  strangely  enough, 
a  boat  from  the  Blossom  was  waiting  not  160  miles  west 
of  his  position  to  meet  with  him.  The  extent  of  coast 
surveyed  was  374  miles.  The  return  jouniey  to  Fort 
Franklin  was  safely  accomplished,  and  they  arrived  at 
their  house  on  the  31st  of  September,  when  they  found 
Richoi'dson  and  Kendal  haa  returned  on  the  first  of 
the  month,  having  accomplished  a  voyage  of  about  500 
miles,  or  902  by  tne  coast  line,  between  the  4th  of  July 
and  the  8th  of  August.  They  had  pushed  forward  bo* 
yond  the  strait  named  after  their  boats,  the  Dolphin  and 
Union. 

In  ascending  the  Coppermine,  tbey  Lad  to  abandon 
their  boats  and  carry  their  provisions  and  baggage. 

Having  passed  another  winter  at  Fort  Franklin,  as 
soon  as  the  season  broke  up  tho  Canadians  were  dis- 
missed, and  the  party  returned  to  England. 

The  cold  experienced  in  the  last  winter  was  intense, 
the  thermometer  standing  at  one  time  at  58°  below  zero, 
but  having  now  plenty  of  tbod,  a  weather-tight  dwell- 
ing, and  good  health,  they  passed  it  cheertully.  Dr. 
Richardson  gave  a  courae  of  lectures  on  practical  geol- 
ogy, and  Mr.  Drnminond  tiirnished  information  on  natu- 
ral history.  JEUiring  tho  winter,  in  a  solitary  hut  on  the 
Rocky  mountains,  he  managef^  to  collect  200  sixicimens 

.>f  ,];»irdi9i  animals,  <&c.,  and  more  than  1500  of  plants. 
9  F* 


# 


,..., 


♦140 


PROGUIOSS   OF   AUariC  DISCOVKRY. 


i  When  Captain  Franklin  left  England  to  proceed  Cn 
this  expedition  he  had  to  undergo  a  severe  struggle 
between  liis  feelings  of  aftection  and  a  sense  of  duty, 
llis  wife  (he  has  been  married  twice)  was  then  lying  at 
the  point  of  death,  and  indeed  died  the  day  after  ho 
left  England.  But  with  heroic  fortitude  she  urged  hia 
departure  at  the  very  day  appointed,  entreating  him, 
as  lie  valued  her  peace  and  Ins  own  glory,  not  to  delay 
a  moment  on  her  account.  His  feelings,  therefore,  may 
be  inferred,  but  not  described,  when  lie  had  to  elevate 
on  Garrv  Island  a  silk  fla^,  which  she  bad  made  and 
given  him  as  a  parting  gift,  with  the  instruction  that 
He  was  only  to  hoist  it  on  reaching  the  Polar  Sea. 


Beechet^s  Voyage. — 1826-28. 


*  H.  M.  SLOOP  Blossoni,  26,  Captain  F.  "W.  Beechey, 
Bailed  from  Spithead  on  the  19tli  of  May,  1825,  and 
her  instructions  directed  her,  after  surveying  some  of 
the  islands  in  the  Pacific,  to  be  in  Behring's  Straits  by 
the  summer  or  autumn  of  1826,  and  contingently  in  that 
of  1827. 

It  is  foreign  to  my  purpose  here  to  allude  to  those 
parts  of  her  voyage  anterior  to  her  arrival  in  the  Straits. 

On  the  28th  of  June  the  Blossom  came  to  an  anchor 
off  tlie  town  of  Petropolowski,  where  she  fell  in  with 
the  Russian  ship  of  war  Modesto,  under  the  commano 
of  Baron  Wrangel,  so  well  known  for  his  enterprise  it 
the  hazardous  expedition  by  sledges  over  the  ice  to'thr 
northward  of  Cape  Shelatskoi,  or  Errinos. 
*  Captain  Beechey  here  found  dispatches  informiuf 
him  of  the  retui*n  of  Parry's  expedition.  Being  bese* 
by  currents  and  other  difiiculties,  it  was  not  till  the  5tb 
of  July  that  the  Blossom  got  clear  of  the  harbor,  and 
made  the  best  of  her  way  to  Kotzebue  Sound,  reaching 
tlie  appointed  rendezvous  at  Chamiso  Island  on  the  25th. 
After  landing  and  burying  a  bari*el  of  ilour  upon  Puffin 
Rock,  the  most  urfrequentcd  spot  about  the'island,  the 
Blossoni  occupie<?  ^he  thne  in  sva-veying  and  examining 


# 


BEECUEY  8  VOYAOBiw^^  d?"? 


141 


tac  neighboring  coasts  to  the  noiiheast.  On  the  30th 
Ehe  tooK  her  departure  from  the  island,  erectinj^  posts 
or  land-marks,  and  burying  dispatches  at  Cape  Krnsen- 
Btern,  near  a  cape  which  he  named  after  Franklin,  near 
Icy  Cape. 

The  ship  returned  to  the  rendezvous  on  the  evening 
of  the  28th  of  August.  The  barrel  of  flour  had  been 
dug  up  and  approfjriated  by  the  natives. 

On  the  first  visit  of  one  of  these  parties,  they  con- 
structed a  chart  of  the  coast  upon  the  sand,  of  which, 
however,  Captain  Beechey  at  first  took  very  little  notice. 
"  They,  however,  renewed  their  labor,  and  performed 
their  work  upon  the  sandy  beach  in  a  very  ingenious  and 
intelligible  manner.  The  coast  line  was  iirst  marked 
out  with  a  stick,  and  the  distances  regulated  by  the 
day's  journey.  The  hills  and  ranges  of  mountains  were 
next  shown  by  elevations  of  sand  or  stone,  and  the 
islands  represented  by  heaps  of  pebbles,  their  propor- 
tions being  duly  attended  to.  As  the  work  proceeded, 
some  of  the  bystanders  occasionally  suggeated  altera- 
tions, and  Captain  Beechey  moved  one  of  the  Diom^de 
Islands,  which  was  misplaced.  This  was  at  first  obr 
jected  to  by  the  hydrographer,  but  one  of  the  party 
recollecting  that  the  islands  were  seen  in  one  from  Cape 
Prince  of  Wales,  confirmed  its  new  position  and  made 
the  mistake  quite  evident  to  the  others,  who  were  much 
surprised  that  Captain  Beechey  should  have  any  knowl- 
edge of  the  subject.  When  the  mountains  ana  islands 
were  erected,  the  villages  and  fishing-stations  were 
marked  by  a  number  of  sticks  placed  upright,  in  imita- 
tion of  those  which  are  put  up  on  the  coast  wherever 
these  people  fix  their  abode.  In  time,  a  complete  hy- 
drographical  plan  was  drawn  from  Cape  Derby  to  Cape 
Krusenstern. 

This  ingenuity  and  accuracy  of  description  on  the 
part  of  the  Esquimaux  is  worthy  of  particular  remark, 
and  has  been  verified  by  almost  all  the  Arctic  explorera. 

The  barge  which  had  been  dispatched  to  the  east- 
ward, under  ctarge  of  Mr.  Elson,  reached  to  latitude 
n°.%^:  n"  N.,  and  lopgitude  156°  2^  3V'  W-,  wlipr0 


U2 


PBOOimBt  OF  AECf!<5  ©DSCJOVEBY 


k 


she  was  stopped  by  the  ice  which  was  attached  to  the 
shore.  The  farthest  tongue  of  land  they  reached  was 
named  Point  Barrow,  and  is  about  126  miles  northeast 
of  Icy  Cape,  being  only  about  150  or  160  miles  from 
Franklin's  discoveries  west  of  the  Mackenzie  river. 

The  wind  suddenly 'changing  to  southwest,  the  com- 
pact body  of  ice  began  to  drift  with  the  current  to  the 
northeast  at  the  rate  of  three  and  a  half  miles  an  hour, 
and  Mr.  Elson,  finding  it  difficult  to  avoid  large  floating 
masses  of  ice,  was  obliged  to  come  to  an  anchor  to  pre- 
vent being  driven  back.  "  It  was  not  long  before  he  was 
so  closely  beset  in  the  ice,  that  no  clear  water  could 
be  seen  in  any  direction  h'om  the  hills,  and  the  ice 
continuing  to  press  against  the  shore,  his  vessel  was 
driven  upon  the  beach,  and  there  left  upon  her  broad- 
side in  a  most  helpless  condition;  and  to  add  to  his 
cheerless  prospect  vhe  disposition  of  the  natives,  whom 
he  found  to  increuse  in  numbers  as  he  advanced  to  the 
northward,  was  of  a  very  doubtful  character.  At  Point 
Barrow,  where  they  were  very  numerous,  their  over- 
bearing behavicH*,  and  the  thefts  they  openly  prac- 
ticed, 4eft  no  doubt  of  what  would  be  the  fate  of  his 
litiili  crew,  in  the  event  Of  their  falling  into  their 
power.  They  were  in  this  dilemma  several  days,  dur- 
ing which  every  endeavor  was  made  to  extricate  the 
vessel  but  without  effect,  and  Mr.  Elson  contemplated 
sinking  her  secretly  in  a  lake  that  was  near,  to  prevent 
A  her  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Esquimaux,  and  then 
making  his  way  along  the  coast  in  a  baidar,  which  he 
had  no  doubt  he  should  be  able  to  purchase  from  the 
natives.  At  length,  however,  a  change  of  wind  loos- 
ened the  ice,  and  after  considerable  labor  and  trial,  in 
which  the  personal  strength  of  the  officers  was  united 
to  that  of  the  seamen,  Mr.  Elson,  with  his  shipmates, 
fortunately  succeeded  in  effecting  their  escape. 

Captain  Beechey  was  very  anxious  to  remain  in 
Kotzebue  Sound  until  the  end  of  October,  the  period 
named  in  his  instructions,  but  the  rapid  approach  of 
wintt»r,  the  danger  of  being  locked  up,  having  only 
five  weeks'  provisions  Ipft,  and  the  nearest  point  at 


mmmimiiUailm 


.iJijattt^  beeohby's  voyaok.     iri 


148 


which  he  could  replenish  being  some  2000  miles  dis- 
tant, induced  his  officers  to  concur  with  him  in  the 
necessity  of  leaving  at  once.  A  barrel  of  flour  and 
other  avticles  were  buried  on  the  sandy  point  of  Cha- 
miso,  for  Franklin,  which  it  was  hoped  would  escape 
the  prying  eyes  of  the  natives. 

After  a  cruise  to  California,  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
Loochoo,  the  Benin  Blands,  &c.,  the  Blossom  returned 
to  Chamiso  Island  on  the  6th  of  July,  1827.  They 
found  the  flour  and  dispatches  they  had  left  the  Di^e- 
vious  year  unmolested.  Lieut.  Belcher  was  dispatched 
in  the  barge  to  explore  the  coast  to  the  northward,  and 
the  ship  rollowed  her  jis  soon  as  the  wind  permitted. 
On  the  9th  of  September,  when  stand  ine  m  for  the 
northern  shore  of  Kotzebue  Sound,  the  ship  drifting 
with  the  current  took  the  ground  on  a  sand-bank  neat 
Hotham  Inlet,  but  the  wind  moderating,  as  the  tide 
rose  she  went  off  the  shoal  apparently  without  injury. 

After  this  narrow  escape  from  shipwreck  they  beat 
up  to  Chamiso  Island,  which  they  reached  on  the  10th 
.01  September.  Kot  finding  the  oarge  returned  aa  ex- 
pected, the  coast  was  scanned,  and  a  signal  of  die^ss 
found  flying  on  the  southwest  point  of  Choris  Pin- 
insn1j&,  and  two  men  waving  a  white  cloth  to  attract 
notice.  On  landing,  it  was  round  that  this  party  were 
the  crew  of  the  barge,  which  had  been  wrecked  in  Kot- 
zebue Sound,  and  three  of  the  men  were  also  lost. 

On  the  29th  a  collision  took  place  with  the  natives, 
which  resulted  in  three  of  the  seamen  and  four  of  the 
marines  being  wounded  by  arrows,  and  one  of  the  na- 
tives killed  by  the  return  fire. 

After  leaving  advices  for  Franklin,  as  before,  the 
Blossom  finally  left  Chamiso  on  the  6th  of  October. 
In  a  haze  and  strong  wind  she  ran  between  the  land 
and  a  shoal,  and  a  passage  had  to  be  forced  through 
breakers  at  the  imminent  danger  of  the  ship^s  striking. 
The  Blossom  then  made  the  best  of  her  way  homtj, 
reaching  England  in  the  first  week  of  October,  182% 


>if* 


i^  «£V 


.•?•? 


'W> 


f 


w 


4^ 


PKOOSSSa  OF  Ascmo  disoovxby. 


«-        Farky's  Foubih,  ok  Polab  Voyage,  182T.*('«\ 

In  1826,  Capt.  Parry,  who  had  only  returned  from 
Ilia  last  voyage  in  the  close  of  the  preceding  year,  was 
much  struck  by  the  suggestions  of  Mr.  Scoresby,  in  a 
paper  read  before  the  W  ernerian  Society,  in  which  he 
sketched  out  a  plan  for  reaching  the  highest  latitudes 
of  the  Polar  Sea,  north  of  Spitzbergen,  by  means  of 
sledge  boats  drawn  over  the  smooth  fields  of  ice  which 
were  known  to  prevail  in  those  regions.  Col.  Beau- 
foy,  F.  E.  S.,  had  also  suggested  this  idea  some  years 
previously.  Comparing  these  with  a  similar  plan  orig- 
inally proposed  by  Captain  Franklin,  and  wnich  was 
placed  in  his  hands  by  Mr.  Bftrrow,  the  Secretary  of 
the  Admiralty,  Capt.  Parry  laid  his  modified  views  of 
the  feasibility  of  the  project,  and  his  willingness  to  un- 
dertake it,  before  Lord  Melville,  the  First  Lord  of  the 
Admiralty,  who,  after  consulting  with  the  President 
and  Council  of  the  Hoyal  Society,  was  pleased  to  sanc- 
tion the  attempt ;  accordingly,  his  old*  snip,  the  Hecla, 
was  fitted  out  for  the  voyage  to  Spitzbergen,  the  fol- 
l^ing  officers,  (all  of  whom  had  been  with  Parry  be- 
^m,)  and  crew  being  appointed  to  her :  — 

In  ' 
Heda, 

Captain— "W.  E.  Parry.  * 

Lieutenants  —  J.  C.  Boss,  Henry  Foster,  E.  J.  Bird, 

F.  R.  M.  Crozier.  ^ 

5*ur8er  —  James  HaJse.  ,^ 

Surgeon — C.J.Beverley.  mttm 

On  |he  4:th  of  April,  1827,  the  outfit  and  prepara- 
tions being  completed,  the  Hecla  left  the  Kore  for  the 
coast  of  2forway,  touching  at  Hammerfest,  to  embark 
eight  reindeer",  and  some  moss  {flenorrvyce  rangiferiha) 
suficient  for  their  support,  the  consumption  being 
about  4  lbs.  per  day,  but  they  can  go  without  food  for 
several  days.  A  tremendous  gale  of  wind,  experienced 
off  Hakluyt's  Headland,  and  the  quantity  of  ice  with 
which  the  ship  was  in  consequence  beset,  detained  the 
voyagers  for  nearly  a  month,  but  on  the  18th  of  June. 


n 


# 


ii-iiiflaiii^' 


r  wff 


FAKBY  S  rOUSTH   VOYAGE. 


145 


T   »'. 


a  southerly  wind  dispersing  the  ice,  they  dropped 
anchor  in  a  cove,  on  the  northern  coast  of  Spitzbergen, 
which  appeared  to  offer  a  secure  haven,  and  to  which 
the  name  of  the  ship  was  given.  On  the  20th,  the 
boats,  which  had  been  especially  prepared  in  England 
for  this  kind  of  jonrney,  were  got  out  and  made  ready, 
and  they  left  the  ship  on  the  22d  of  June.  A  descrip- 
tion of  these  boats  may  not  here  be  out  of  place. 

They  were  twenty  feet  long  and  seven  broad,  flat 
floored,  like  ferry  boats,  strengthened  and  made  elas- 
tic by  sheets  of  felt  between  the  planking,  covered 
with  water-proof  canvass.  A  runner  attached  to  each 
side  of  the  keel,  adapted  them  for  easy  draught  on  the 
ice  after  the  manner  ot  a  sledge.  They  were  also  fit- 
ted with  wheels,  to  be  used  if  deemed  expedient  and 
useful.  Two  officers  and  twelve  men  were  attached 
to  each  boat,  and  they  were  named  the  Enterprise  and 
Endeavor.  The  weight  of  each  boat,  including  pro- 
visions and  every  requisite,  was  about  3Y80  lbs.  Lients. 
Crozier  and  Foster  were  left  on  board,  and  Capt,  Parry 
took  with  him  in  his  boat  Mr.  Beverley,  Surgeon,  while 
Lieut,  (now  Capt.  Sir  James)  Ross,  and  Lieut,  (now 
Commander)  Bird,  had  charge  of  the  other. 

The  reindeer  and  the  wheels  were  given  up  as  use- 
less, owing  to  the  rough  nature  of  the  ice.  Provisions 
for  seventy-one  days  were  taken  —  the  daily  allowance 
per  man  on  the  journey  being  10  ozs.  biscuit,  9  ozs. 
pemmican,  1  oz.  sweetened  cocoa  powder  (being 
enough  to  make  a  pint,)  and  one  gill  of  rum ;  but 
scanty  provision  in  such  a  climate,  for  men  employed 
on  severe  labor ;  three  ounces  of  tobacco  were  also 
served  out  to  each  per  week.  « 

As  fuel  was  too  bulky  to  transport,  spirits  of  wine 
were  consumed,  which  answered  all  the  purposes  re- 
quired, a  pint  twice  a  day  being  found  sufficient  to 
warm  each  vessel,  when  applied  to  an  iron  boiler  by  a 
shallow  lamp  with  seven  wicks.  After  floating  the 
boats  for  about  eighty  miles,  they  came  to  an  unpleas- 
ant mixed  surface  of  ice  and  water,  where  their  toilsome 
journey  commenced,  the  boats  having  to  be  laden  and 


'jM^. 


U6 


PBOCKRKS8  OF  AHGTIO  DISOOVEBY. 


$ 


unladen  eeveral  times  according  as  they  came  to  floes  > 
of  ice  or  lanos  of  water,  and  they  were  drifted  to  the  ; 
southward  by  the  ice  at  the  rate  of  four  or  five  miles  a 
day.  Pai'ry  found  it  more  advantageous  to  travel  by 
night,  the  snow  being  then  harder,  and  the  inconven- 
ieoce  of  snow  blindness  being  avoided,  while  the  party 
enjoyed  greater  warmth  during  the  period  of  rest,  and 
had  better  opportunities  of  drying  their  clothes  by  the 
sun.  ;.'    •     M.>¥'t;v  .-. i:;.»  X->"-'   ■         '       ■  '*-  j*--- 

I  cannot  do  better  man  quote  Pafiy's  graphic  de- 
scription of  this  novel  course  of  proceeding :  **  Travel- 
ing by  night,  and  sleeping  b;;^  day,  so  completely  in- 
verted the  natural  order  of  tlM|y^S  that  it  was  difficult 
to  persuade  ourselves  of  the  rSuity .  Even  the  officers 
ana  myself,  who  were  all  furnished  with  pocket  chro- 
nometers, could  not  always  bear  in  mind  at  what  part 
of  the  twenty-hours  we  had  arrived ;  and  there  were 
several  of  the  men  who  declared,  and  I  believe  truly, 
that  they  never  knew  night  from  day  during  the  whole 
excursion.  # 

JfWhen  we  rose  in  the  evening,  we  commenced  our 
day  by  prayers,  after  which  we  took  off  our  fur  sleep- 
ing-dresses and  put  on  clothes  for  traveling ;  the  fanner . 
being,  made  of  camlet  lined  with  raccoon  skin,  anot  the 
latter  of  strong  blue  cloth.  We  made  a  point  of  al- 
ways putting  on  the  same  stockings  and  boots  for 
traveling  in,  whether  they  had  been  dried  during  the 
day  or  not,  and  I  beliere  it  was  only  in  ^ve  or  six  in- 
stances at  the  most  that  they  were  not  either  still  wet 
or  hard  frozen.  This  indeed  was  of  no  consequence, 
beyond  the  discomfort  of  first  putting  them  on  in  this 
state,  as  they  were  sure  to  be  thoroughly  wet  in  a 
quarter  of  an  hour  after  commencing  our  journey ; 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  it  was  of  vital  importance 
to  keep  dry  things  for  sleeping  in.  Being  ^  rigged ' 
for  traveling,  we  breakfasted  upon  warm  cocoa  and 
biscuit,  and  after  stowing  the  things  in  the  boats,  and 
on  the  sledges,  so  as  to  secure  them  as  much  as  pos- 
sible frond  wet,  we  set  off  on  our  day's  journey,  and 
usually  traveled  four,  fiye,  or  even  six  hours,  accords 
ing  to  circumstances."         - 


\ 


JSk 


% 


«», 


*T»       parry's  FOL'RTn  VOTAOB. 


147 


In  five  days,  notwithstanding  their  perseverance 
and  continued  journeys,  they  found,  by  oDservation  at 
noon,  on  tlie  30th,  that  they  bad  only  made  eight  miles 
of  direct  northing.  ^ 

At  Walden  Island,  one  of  the  Seven  Islands,  and 
Little  Table  Island,  reserve  snpplies  of  provisions  were 
deposited  to  fall  back  upon  in  case  of  necessity. 

In  halting  early  in  the  morning  for  the  purposes  of 
rest,  the  boats  were  hauled  up  on  the  lar^st  piece  of 
ice  that  offered  the  least  chance  of  breaking  through, 
or  of  coming  in  contact  with  other  masses,  the  snow  or 
wet  was  cleaned  out  and  the  sails  rigged  as  awnings. 
^  Every  man  then  imn^iately  put  on  dry  stockings 
and  fur  boots^  after  whicn  we  set  about  the  necessary 
repairs  of  boats,  sledges,  or  clothes,  and  after  serving 
the  provisions  for  the  succeeding  day,  we  went  to  sup- 
per. Host  of  the  officers  and  men  then  smoked  their 
pipes,  which  se^ed  to  dry  the  boats  and  awnings  very 
much,  and  usually  raised  the  temperature  of  our  lodg- 
ings 10°  or  15°.  This  part  of  the  twenty-fbur  hours 
was  often  a  time,  and  the  only  one,  of  real  enjoyment 
to  us  ;  the  men  told  their  stories,  and  fought  all  their 
battles  o'er  again,  and  the  labors  of  the  day,  unsuccess- 
ful as  they  too  often  were,  were  forgotten.  A  regular 
watch  was  set  durinff  our  resting  time,  to  look  out  for 
bears,  or  for  the  ice  oreakinff  up  round  us,  as  well  as 
to  attend  to  the  drying  of  the  clothes,  each  inan  alter- 
nately takinff  this  duty  for  one  hour.  We  then  con- 
cluded our  day  with  prayers,  and  having  put  on  oui 
fur  dresses,  lay  down  to  sleep  with  a  degree  of  comfort 
which  perhaps  few  persons  would  imagine  possible  un- 
der such  circumstances,  pur  chief  inconvenience  being, 
that  we  were  somewhat  pinched  for  room,  and  there- 
fore obliged  to  stow  rather  closer  than  was  quite  agree- 
able.» 

This  close  stowage  may  be  imagined  when  it  is  re- 
membered that  thirteen  persons  had  to  sleep  in  a  boat 
seven  feet  broad.  After  sleeping  about  seven  hours, 
they  were  roused  from  their  slumbers  by  the  sound  of 
a  bugle  from  the  cook  and  watchman,  which  announced 


.us 


PK00KES8   OF   AKCnO   DI800YERT. 


,■ : 


If 


that  their  cocoa  was  smoking  hot,  and  inyited  them  lo 
breakfast.  «; 

Their  progress  was  of  the.  most  tedious  and  toilsonio 
character,  heavy  showers  of  rain  rendering  the  ice  on 
many  occasions  a  mass  of  ^^  slush ;"  on  others  there  was 
from  six  to  eighteen  inches  of  snow  lying  on  the  sur- 
face. Frequently  the  crew  had  to  proceed  on  their 
hands  and  knees  to  secure  a  footing,  and  on  one  occa- 
sion they  made  such  a  snail-like  progress  that  in  two 
hours  they  only  accomplished  150  yards.  On  the  12th 
of  Julv,  they  had  reached  the  latitude  of  $2°  14'  28". 
After  nve  hours'  unceasing  labor  on  the  14th,  the  pro- 
gress was  but  a  mile  ana  j|  half  due  north,  though 
from  three  to  four  miles  hacrbeen  traversed,  and  ten  at 
least  walked,  having  made  three  journeys  a  great  part 
of  the  way ;  launched  and  hauled  up  the  boats  four 
times,  and  dragged  them  over  twenty-five  separate 
pieces  of  ice.  On  the  18th,  after  eleven  hours  of  ac- 
tual labor,  requiring  for  the  most  part  the  exertion  of 
the  whole  strength  of  the  party,  they  had  traveled  over 
a  space  not  exceeding  four  miles,  of  which  only  two 
were  made  good. 

But  on  halting  on  the  morning  of  the  20th,  having 
by  his  reckoning  accomplished  six  and  a  half  miles  in 
a  N.  N.  W.  direction,  the  distance  traversed  being  ten 
miles  and  a  half.  Parry  found  to  his  mortification  from 
observation  at  noon,  mat  they  were  not  five  miles  to 
the  northward  of  their  place  at  noon  on  the  17th, 
although  they  had  certainly  traveled  twelve  miles  in 
that  direction  since  then. 

On  the  21st,  a  floe  of  ice  on  which  they  had  lodged 
the  boats  and  sledges,  broke  with  their  weight,  and  all 
went  through  with  several  of  the  crew,  who,  with  the 
sledges  were  providentially  saved. 

On  the  23d,  the  farthest  northerly  point  was  reached, 
which  was  about  82°  46', 

At  noon  on  the  26th,  the  weather  being  clear,  the 
meridian  altitude  of  the  sun  was  obtained, "  by  which," 
says  Parry, "  we  found  ourselves  in  latitude  82°  40'  23", 
so  that  since  our  last  observation  (at  midnight  on  the 


■iWi..',-': 


.'ifi!^ 


.T- 


PABftr's  TOUBTH  TOIAOS. 


149 


22d,)  we  had  lost  by  dri/lb  no  less  than  thirteen  and  a 
half  miles,  for  we  were  now  more  than  three  miles  to  the 
southward  of  that  observation,  though  we  had  certainly 
traveled  between  ten  and  eleven,  due  north  in  this 
interval  I  Again,  we  were  but  one  mile  to  the  north 
of  our  place  at  noon  on  *^  Jlst,  though  we  had  esti- 
mated our  distance  made  good  at  twenty-three  miles." 
After  encountering  every  species  of  fatigue  and  dis- 
heartening obstacles,  in  perilof  their  lives  almost  every 
hour.  Parry  now  became  convinced  that  it  was  hope- 
less to  pursue  the  journey  any  further,  and  he  could 
not  even  reach  the  eighty-third  parallel ;  for  after  thir- 
ty-five days  of  continuous  and  most  fatiguing  drudge 
ery,  with  half  their  resources  expended,  and  the  mid- 
dle of  the  season  arrived,  he  found  that  the  distance 
gained  in  their  laborious  traveling  was  lost  by  the 
drift  and  sea  of  the  ice  wiUi  the  southerly  current  dur- 
ing the  period  of  rest.  After  planting  their  ensigns 
and  pennants  on  the  26th,  and  making  it  a  day  of  rest 
on  tiie  27th,  the  return  to  the  southward  was  com- 
menced. Nothing  particular  occurred.  Lieutenant 
Koss  managed  to  bring  down  with  his  gun  a  fat  she 
bear,  which  came  to  have  a  look  at  the  boats,  and  af- 
ter gormandizing  on  its  tiesh,  an  excess  which  may 
be  excused  considering  it  was  the  tirst  fresh  meat  they 
had  tasted  for  many  a  day,  some  symptoms  of  indi- 
gestion manifested  themselves  among  the  party. 

On  the  outward  journey  very  little  of  animal  life 
was  seen.  A  passing  gull,  a  solitary  rotge,  two  seals, 
and  a  couple  of  flies,  were  all  that  their  eager  eyes 
could  detect.  But  on  their  return,  these  became  more 
numerous.  On  the  Sth  of  August,  seven  or  eight  nar- 
whals were  seen,  and  not  less  than  200  rotges,  a  flock 
of  these  little  birds  occuring  in  every  hole  of  water. 
On  the  11th,  in  latitude  81°  30',  the  sea  was  found 
crowded  with  shrimps  and  other  sea  insects,  on  which 
numerous  birds  were  feeding.  On  this  day  they  took 
their  last  meal  on  the  ice,  being  flfty  miles  distant  from 
Table  Island,  having  accomplished  in  iiteen  days  what 
had  taken  them  thirty-three  to  eflect  on  their  outward 


w 


isa 


PROOBBSH  OV  AROnO  Dl 


journey.  On  the  12th,  they  arrived  at  this  island.  I'he 
bears  had  walked  oif  with  the  relay  of  bread  whicli 
had  been  deposited  there.  To  an  inlet  lyinff  off  Table 
Island,  and  the  most  northern  known  land  upon  the 
globe,  Parry  gave  the  name  of  Ross,  for  "  no  individ- 
ual," he  observes,  "  could  have  exerted  himself  more 
strenuously  to  rob  it  of  this  distinction." 

Putting  to  sea  again,  a  storm  obliged  the  boats  to 
bear  up  for  "Walden  Island.  "  Every  thmg  belcttging  to 
us  (says  Captain  Parry)  was  now  completely  drenched 
by  the  spray  and  snow  ;  we  had  been  fifty-six  hours 
without  rest,  and  forty-eight  at  work  in  the  boats,  so 
that  by^  the  time  they  were  unloaded  we  had  barely 
strength  left  to  haul  them  up  on  the  rocks.  However, 
by  dint  of  great  exertion,  we  managed  to  get  the  boats 
above  the  surf ;  after  which  a  hot  supper,  a  blazing 
fire  of  drift  wood,  and  a  few  hours  quiet  rest,  restored 
us." 

They  finally  reached  the  ship  on  the  21st  of  August, 
after  sixty-one  days'  absence. 

"  The  distance  traversed  during  this  excursion  was 
569  geographical  miles  ;  but  allowing  for  the  times  we 
had  to  return  for  our  baggage,  during  the  greater  part 
of  the  journey  over  the  ice,  we  estimated  our  actual 
traveling  at  978  geographical,  or  1127  statute  miles. 
Considering  our  constant  exposure  to  wet,  cold,  and 
fatigue,  our  stockings  having  generally  been  drenched 
in  snow-water  for  twelve  hours  out  of  every  twenty- 
four,  I  had  great  reason  to  be  thankful  for  the  excellent 
health  in  which,  upon  the  whole,  we  reached  the  ship. 
There  is  little  doubt  that  we  had  all  become  in  a  certain 
degree  gradually  weaker  for  some  time  past ;  but  onl^ 
three  men  of  our  party  now  required  medical  care  — 
two  of  them  with  badly  swelled  legs  and  general  de 
bility,  and  the  other  from  a  bruise,  but  even  these  three 
returned  to  their  duty  in  a  short  time." 

In  a  letter  from  Sir  W.  E.  Parry  to  Sir  John  Borrow, 
dated  November  25, 1845,  he  thus  suggests  some  im 
provements  on  his  old  plan  of  proceedings  :—  *" ' 

^    "  It  is  evident  (he  says)  that  the  causes  of  failnr^  in 


tmm 


rABi|pr*B  FOUBTII    rOYAOS. 


lU 


our  ibrmer  attempt^  in  the  yeai  1827,  were  principalis 
two :  first,  and  chiefly,  the  broken,  rnggoa,  ana  son 
Btate  of  the  ice  over  which  we  traveled  ;  and  eecondly, 
the  drifting  of  the  whole  body  of  ice  in  a  Bontherly. 
direction. 

^'  My  amended  plan  is,  to  go  ont  with  a  single  ship 
to  Spitzbergen,  just  as  we  did  in  the  Hecla,  but  not  so 
early  in  the  season ;  the  object  for  that  year  being 
merely  to  find  secure  winter  quarters  as  far  north  as 
possible.  For  this  purpose  it  would  only  be  necessary, 
to  reach  Hakluvt'a  Headland  by  the  end  of  June, 
which  would  afford  ample  leisure  for  examining  the 
more  northern  lands,  especially  about  the  Seven  Islands, 
where,  in  all  probability,  a  secure  nook  might  be  found 
for  the  ship,  and  a  starting  point  for  the  proposed  ex- 
pedition, some  forty  or  mty  miles  in  advance  of  the 
point  where  the  Hecla  was  before  laid  up.  The  winter 
might  be  usefully  employed  in  various  preparations  for 
the  journey,  as  well  as  in  magnetic,  asti'onomical,  and 
meteorolo^cal  observations,  of  high  interest  in  that 
latitude.  1  propose  that  the  expedition  should  leave 
the  ship  'n  the  course  of  the  month  of  April,  when  the 
ice  would  present  one  hard  and  unbroken  surface,  over 
which,  as  I  confidently  believe,  it  would  not  be  difficult 
to  make  good  thirty  miles  per  day,  without  any  expo- 
sure to  wet,  and  probably  without  snow  blindness.  At 
this  season,  too,  tne  ice  would  probably  be  stationary, 
and  thus  the  two  great  difficulties  which  we  formerly , 
had  to  encounter  would  be  entirely  obviated.  It  misht 
form  a  part  of  the  plan  to  push  out  supplies  previously, 
to  the  distance  of  100  miles,  to  be  taken  up  on  Uie 
way,  so  as  to  commence  the  journey  comparatively 
light ;  and  as  the  intention  would  be  to  complete  the 
enterorise  in  the  course  of  the  month  of  May,  before, 
any  disruption  of  the  ice,  or  any  material  softening  of 
the  surface  had  taken  place,  similar  supplies  might  h^' 
Bent  out  to  the  same  distance,  to  meet  the  party  on 
their  return." 

The  late  Sir  John  Barrow,  in  his  last  work,  com- 
menting on  this,  says,  "  With  all  deference-  to  so  difr: 


# 


■-*% 


p 


162 


PllOOBSSS  OF  ABOnO  V^gpYMRX. 


tingnished  a  eea  officer,  in  postession  of  so  mneh  expe- 
rience as  Sir  Edward  Parry,  there  are  others  who 
express  dislike  of  such  a  plan  ;  and  it  is  not  improba- 
ble that  many  will  be  disposed  to  come  to  the  concln- 
sion,  that  so  long  as  the  Greenland  Seas  pre  hampered 
with  ice,  so  long  as  floes,  and  hnmmocks,  and  heavy 
masses,  continue  to  be  Ibrmed,  so  lone  as  a  determined 
southerly  current  prevails,  so  Ions  will  any  attempt  to 
carry  out  the  plan  in  c^ucetion,  in  nke  manner  fail.  No 
laborious  drudgery  will  ever  be  able  to  conquer  the 
opposing  progress  of  the  current  and  the  ice.  Besides, 
it  can  hardly  oe  doubted,  this  gallant  officer  will  admit, 
on  further  consideration,  that  this  unusual  kind  of  dis- 
gusting and  unseamanliko  labor,  is  not  precisely  such 
as  would  be  relished  bv  the  men  ;  and,  it  may  be  said, 
is  not  exactly  fitted  lor  a  British  man-of-war's-man ; 
moreover,  that  it  required  his  own  all-powerful  example 
to  make  it  even  tolerable."  Sir  John  therefore  sug- 
gested a  somewhat  different  plan.  He  recommended 
that  two  small  ships  should  be  sent  in  the  early  spring 
aloDg  the  western  coast  of  Spitzbergen,  where  usually 
no  impediment  exists,  as  far  up  as  80°.  They  should 
take  every  opportunity  of  proceeding  directly  to  the 
north,  where,  in  about  82°,  rarry  has  told  us  the  large 
^  floes  had  disappeared,  and  the  sea  was  found  to  be 
^  loaded  only  with  loose,  disconnected,  small  masses  of 
ice,  through  which  ships  would  fi.  d  no  difficulty  in 
sailing,  though  totally  unfit  for  boats  dragging ;  and  as 
this  loose  ice  was  drifting  to  the  southwara,  he  further 
says,  that  before  the  middle  of  Auenst  a  ship  might 
have  sailed  up  to  the  latitude  of  82°,  almost  without 
touching  a  piece  of  ice.  It  is  not  then  unreasonable  to 
expect  that  beyond  that  parallel,  even  as  far  as  the 
pole  itself,  the  sea  would  be  free  of  ice,  during  the  six 
summer  months  of  perpetual  sun,  through  eadi  of  the 
twenty-four  hours ;  which,  with  the  aid  of  the  current, 
woula,  in  all  probability,  destroy  and  dissipate  the 
polar  ice.  •■  ■• 

The  distance  from  Hakluyt's  Headland  to  the  pole 
is  ^00  geographical  miles.    -Granting  the  ships  to  make 

••^--■'■-•-  ^^^B  ■ 


.1  pABfl^  FOURTH  VOYAei. 


m 


only  twenty  miles  in  twenty-four  hourt,  (on  the  Buppo* 
Bition  of  much  sailing  ice  to  go  through,)  even  in  that 
case  it  would  require  but  a  month  to  enable  the  ex- 
plorer to  put  his  loot  on  the  pivot  or  point  of  the  axis 
on  which  the  globe  of  the  earth  turns,  remain  there  a 
month,  if  necessary,  to  obtain  the  sought-for  informa- 
tion, and  then,  with  a  southerly  ourrent,  a  fortnight, 
probably  less,  would  bring  him  back  to  Spitzbergen.  * 

In  a  notice  in  the  Quarterly  Review  of  this,  one  of 
the  most  singular  and  perilous  journeys  of  its  kind 
ever  undertaken,  except  perhaps  that  of  Baron  Wran- 
gell  upon  a  similar  enterprise  to  the  northward  of  Behr- 
ing's  Straits,  it  is  observed, — "Let  any  one  conceive 
for  a  moment  the  situation  of  two  open  boats,  laden 
with  seventy  days'  provisions  and  clotliing  for  twenty- 
eight  men,  m  the  midst  of  a  sea  covered  nearly  with 
detached  masses  and  floes  ^  ice,  over  which  these 
boats  were  to  be  dragged,  sometimes  up  one  side  of  a 
rugged  mass,  and  down  the  other,  sometimes  across  the 
lanes  of  water  that  separate  them,  frequently  over  a 
surface  covered  with  deep  snow,  or  through  pools  of 
water.  Let  him  bear  in  mind,  that  the  men  had  little 
or  no  chance  of  any  other  supply  of  provisions  than 
that  which  they  carried  with  them,  calculated  as  just 
sufficient  to  sustain  life,  and  consider  what  their  situa- 
tion would  have  been  in  the  event,  by  no  means  an 
improbable  one,  of  losing  any  part  of  their  scanty 
stock.  Let  any  one  try  to  imagine  to  himself  a  situa- 
tion of  this  kind,  and  he  will  still  haye  but  a  faint  idea 
of  the  e:||rtions  which  the  men  under  Captain  Parry 
had  to  imike,  and  the  sufferings  and  privations  they 
had  to  undergo." 

Captain  Parry  having  thus  completed  his  fifth  voy- 
«ge  into  the  arctic  regions,  in  four  of  which  he  com- 
manded, and  was  second  in  the  other,  it  may  here  be 
desirable  to  give  a  recapitulation  of  his  services.  ■ - 

In  1818  he  was  appointed  Lieut^ant,  commanding 
the  Alexander,  hired  ship,  as  second  officer  with  his 
unde,  Commander  John  Koss.    In  1819,  still  as  Lieu*,  / 

*  Banoir'R  Voyagcti  of  biscovery,  p.  316. 


-€• 


.  "^1^ 


.,;,V;   ■        ■' 


.%■.. 


IM. 


*v 


PK0G]U£8S  OF  ABOTIO  D|pOVEBY. 


tenant,  he  was  appointed  to  command  the  Heda,  and 
to  take  charge  of  the  second  arctic  e?cpedition,  on  which 
service  he  was  employed  two  years.  On  the  14th  of 
November,  1820,  ne  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
Commander. 

On  the  19th  of  December,  1820,  the  Bedfordean 
Gold  Medal  of  the  Bath  and  West  of  England  Society 
tor  the  Encouragement  of  Arts,  Manufactures,  and 
Commerce,  was  unanimously  voted  to  him.  On  the 
30th  of  December  of  that  year,  he  was  appointed  to 
the  Fury,  with  ordei*8  to  take  command  of  the  expedi- 
tion to  the  Arctic  Sea.  With  the  sum  of  600  guineas, 
subscribed  for  the  purpose,  "  the  Explorer  of  the  Polar 
Sea  "  was  afterward  presented  with  a  silver  vase, 
highly  embellished  with  devices  emblematic  of  the 
arctic  voyages.  And  on  the  24th  of  March,  1821,  the 
city  of  Bath  presented  i||i^Hfreedom  to  Captain  Parry,  ii^ 
a  box  of  oak,  highly  and  appropriately  ornamented.i 
0;i  the  8th  of  November,  1821,  he  obtained  his  post- 
captain's  rank.  On  the  22d  of  November,  1823,  he 
was  presented  with  the  freedom  of  the  city  of  Win- 
chester ;  and,  on  the  Ist  of  December,  was  appointed 
acting  hydrographer  to  the  Admiralty  in  the  place  of 
Captain  Hind,  deceased.  In  1824  he  was  appointed  to 
the  Hecla,  to  proceed  on  another  ex^oiin^  voyage. 

On  the  22d  of  November,  J826,  Oaptam  Parr^  was 
formally  appointed  hydrographer  to  the  Admiralty, 
which  office  he  continued  to  hold  until  the  10th  of 
November,  1826. 

In  December,  1826,  he  was  voted  the  freedom  of  the 
borough  of  Lynn,  in  testimonj[  of  the  high  sefise  enter- 
tained by  the  corporation  of  his  meritorious  and  enter 
prising  conduct. 

In  April,  1827,  he  once  more  took  the  command  of 
bis  old  ship,  the  Hecla,  for  another  voyage  of  discoverj 
toward  the  North  Pole.  On  his  return  in  the  close  of 
the  year,  having  paid  off  the  Hecla  at  Deptford,  h« 
r^umed,  on  the  2a  of  November,  his  duties  as  hydro- 
mpher  to  the  Admiralty,  which  office  he  held  until 
♦ne  13th  of  May,  1829.    Having  received  the  Iv«ior  of 


'^- 


.r^;($v 


Wii'iiai 


0- 


# 


04Pr4P^  Boes's  seoond  yoyaqe. 


165 


knighthood,  he  then  resiened  in  favor  of  the  present 
Admiral  Beanfortj  and,  ootaining  permission  from  th« 
Admiralty,  proceeded  to  New  Sooth  Wales  as  resident 
Commissioner  to  the  Australian  Agricultural  Com 
pany,  taking  diarge  of  their  recentlj  acquired  large 
territory  in  the  neighborhood  of  Port  Stephen.  He 
returned  .from  Australia  in  1834.  From  the  7th  of 
March,  1885;  to  the  dd  of  February,  1886,  he  acted  as 
Poor  Law  Commissioner  in  Norfolk.  Early  in  1887, 
he  was  appointed  to  organize  the  Mail  Packet  Service, 
then  transferred  to  the  Admiralty,  and  afterward,  in 
April,  was  apix^nted  Controller  of  steam  machinery  to 
the  Navy,  wniclb  office  he  continued  to  hold  up  to  De- 
cember, 1846.  From  that  period  to  the  present  time 
he  has  filled  the  post  of  Captain  Superintendent  of  the 
Royal  Navy  Hospital  at  Haslar. 

^APTAm  JoHH  Boss's  Second  Yotaoe,  1829-83* 

• 

In  the  year  1829,  Capt.  Boss,  the  pioneer  of  arctie 
exploration  iR  the  19th  century,  being  anxious  onoe 
more  to  display  his  zeal  and  enterprise  as  well  as  to 
retrieve  his  nautical  reputation  from  those  unfortunate 
blunders  and  mistakes  which  had  attached  to  his  first 
voyage,  and  thus  remove  the  cloud  which  had  for 
nearly  ten  years  hung  over  his  professional  character^ 
encUavored  without  effect  to  induce  the  government 
to  send  him  out  to  the  Polar  Seas  in  charge  of  another 
expedition.  The  Board  of  Admiral^ty  of  that  day,  in 
the  spirk  of  retrenchment  which  peiraded  their  coun- 
cils, weft,  however,  not  disposed  to  recommend  any 
further  grant  for  research,  even  the  Board  ei  Longi- 
tude was  abolished,  and  the  boon  of  20,000^.  offered 
by  act  of  parliament  for  the  promoticm  <^  arctic  djiiv 
covery,  also  withdrawn  by  a  repeal  of  the  act.  ^ 

C^tain  Boss,  however,  undaunted  by  the  chillio§? 
indiTOrenoe  thus  manifested  toward  his  proposals  by 
the  Admiralty,  still  persevered,  having  devoted  3000/. 
out  of  his  own  funds  toward  the  prosecution  of  the  ob- 
ject he  had  in  view.  He  was  fortunate  enough  to 
10  « 


156 


PBOGBKSS  OF  AiUjnO  l4ttf>YEUY. 


meet  with  a  public-spirited  and  affluent  coadjatoi  And 
supporter  in  the  late  Sir  Felix  Booth,  the  eminen  dis- 
tiller, and  that  gentleman  nobly  contributed  lTt(X)0^. 
toward  the  expenses.  Captain  Boss  thereupon  set  to 
work,  and  purchased  a  smauU  Liverpool  steamer  named 
the  victory,  whose  tonnage  he  increased  to  150  tons. 
She  was  provisioned  for  three  years.  Oaptain  Ross 
chose  for  his  second  in  command  his  ngpnew.  Com- 
mander James  Boss,  who  had  been  with  him  on  his 
first  arctic  expedition,  and  had  subsequently  accompa- 
nied Parry  in  all  his  voyages.  The  other  omoers  of  the 
vessel  were — Mr.  William  Thom,  purser ;  Mr.  George 
M'Diarmid,  surgeon ;  Thomas  BlanKy,Thos.  Abemethy, 
and  George  Taylor,  as  Ist,  2d,  and  3d,  mates  ;  Alex- 
ander Brunton  and  Allen  Macinnes  as  1st  and  2d  engi- 
neers ;  and  nineteen  petty  officers  and  seamen ;  making 
a  complement  in  all  of  28  men. 

The  Admiralty  furnished  towcurd  the  purposes  of  #e 
expedition  a  decked  boat  of  sixteen  tons,  called  the 
Krusenstem,  and  two  boats  which  had  been  used  by 
Franklin,  with  a  stock  of  books  and  instruments. 

The  vessel  being  reported  ready  for  sea  was  visited 
and  examined  by  the  late  Kin^  of  the  French,  the 
Lords  of  the  Admiralty,  and  other  parties  taking  an 
interest  in  the  expedition,  and  set  sail  from  Woolwich 
on  the  23d  of  May,  1829.  For  all  practical  purposes 
the  steam  machinery,  on  which  the  commander  had 
greatly  relied,  was  found  on  trial  utterlv  useless. 

Having  receive^  much  damage  to  her  spars,  in  a 
severe  gfue,  the  ship  put  in  to  the  Danish  settlwaent  of 
Holsteinberg,  on  the  Greenland  coast,  to  iffit,  and 
sailed  again  to  the  northward  on  the  26th  of  June. 
13iey  found  a  clear  sea,  and  «ven  in  the  mic'dle  of  Lan- 
caster Sound  and  Barrow's  Strait  perceived  no  traces 
of  ice  or  snow,  except  what  appeared  on  the  Mty  sum- 
mits of  some  of  the  moimtains.  The  thermometer  stood 
at  40°,  and  the  weather  was  so  mild  that  the  officers 
dined  in  the  cabin  without  a  fire,  with  the  skylight 
partially  open.  On  the  10th  of  August  they  passed 
Oftpe  X  ork,  aad  thence  crossed  over  into  Begent  JnU  ^ 


(UFr4iPkllOB6  8  SJMXiAD  VOYAOA. 


167 


making  the  western  coast  between  Sepping's  and  Elwio 
Bay  on  the  16th. 

They  here  fell  in  with  those  formidable  streams, 
packs,  and  floating  bergs  of  ice  which  had  offered  such 
obstructions  to  Parry's  ships.  From  their  proximity  to 
the  magnetic  pole,  their  compasses  became  useless  as 
they  proceeded  southward.  On  the  18th  they  reached 
the  spot  where  the  Fury  was  abandoned,  but  no  rem- 
nants of  the  vessel  were  to  be  seen.  All  her  sails, 
stores,  and  provisions,  on  land,  were,  however,  found  ; 
the  hermetically-sealed  tin  canisters  having  kept  the 
provisions  from  the  attacks  of  bears ;  and  tlie  flour, 
bread,  wine,  spirits,  sugar,  &c.,  proved  as  good,  after 
being  here  four  years,  as  on  the  first  day  thev  were 
packed.  This  store  formed  a  very  seasonable  addition, 
which  was  freely  made  available,  and  after  increasing 
their  stock  to  two  years  and  ten  months'  supply,  they 
Btj|l  left  a  large  quantity  for  the  wants  of  any  future 
explorers.  Qn  the  15th,  crossing  Cresswell  Bay,  they 
roa^' ed  Cape  Garry,  the  farthest  point  which  had  been 
set-^  Parry.  They  were  here  much  inconvenienced 
an  layed  by  fogs  and  floating  ice.  While  moun- 
tains of  ice  were  tossing  around  them  on  every  side, 
they  were  often  forced  to  seek  safety  by  mooring  them- 
selves to  these  formidable  masses,  and  driiting  with 
them,  sometimes  forward,  sometimes  backward.  In  this 
manner  on  one  occasion  no  less  than  nineteen  miles 
were  lost  in  a  few  hours ;  at  other  times  they  under- 
went frequent  and  severe  shocks,  yet  escaped  any  seri- 
ous damage. 

Gapt^  Eoss  draws  a  lively  picture  of  what  a  ves- 
sel endures  in  sailing  among  these  moving  hills.  He 
reminds  the  reader  that  ice  is  stone,  as  solid  as  if  it 
were  sranite  ;  and  he  bids  him  *^  imagine  these  moun- 
tains burled  through  a  narrow  strait  Dv  a  rapid  tide, 
meeting  with  the  noise  of  thunder,  breaking  from  each 
other's  precipices  huge  fragments,  or  rending  each 
other  asunder,  till,  losing  their  former  equilibrium, 
they  fell  over  headlong,  lining  the  sea  arouna  in  break- 
ers and  whirling  it  in  eddies     There  is  not  a  moment 


;*.,, 


158 


PBOABE88  OP  AMcno  wa^^wmBfti 


1b  which  it  can  be  conjectured  what  will  happen  in  the 
next ;  there  is  not  one  which  may  not  be  the  last.  The 
attention  is  troubled  to  fix  on  any  thin^  amid  such  con 
fusion  ;  still  must  it  be  alive,  that  it  may  seize  on  the 
single  moment  of  help  or  escape  which  may  occur 
Yet  with  all  this,  and  it  is  the  hardest  task  of  all,  there 
is  nothing  to  be  acted, —  no  effort  to  be  made, —  he 
must  be  patient,  as  if  he  were  unconcerned  or  careless, 
waiting,  as  he  best  can,  for  the  fate,  be  it  what  it  may, 
which  ne  cannot  influence  or  avoid." 

Proceeding  southward,  Ross  found  Brentford  Bay, 
about  thirty  miles  beyond  Gape  Garry,  to  be  of  consia- 
erable  extent,  with  some  fine  harbors.  Landing  here, 
the  British  colors  were  unfurled,  and  the  coast,  named 
after  the  promoter  of  the  expedition,  was  taken  posses* 
sion  of  in  the  name  of  the  King.  Extensive  and  com- 
modious harbors,  named  Ports  Logan,  Elizabeth,  and 
Eclipse,  were  discovered,  and  a  large  bay,  which  vpi> 
called  Mary  Jones  Bay.  By  the  end  of  September 
the  ship  haa  examined  300  miles  of  undiscovered  coast 
The  winter  now  set  in  with  severity,  huge  masses  of 
ice  began  to  close  around  them,  the  thermometer  sanl) 
many  degrees  below  freezing  point,  and  snow  fell  very 
thick.  By  sawing  through  the  ice,  the  vessel  was  got 
into  a  secure  position  to  pass  the  winter,  in  a  station 
which  is  now  named  on  the  maps  Felix  Harbor.  The 
machinery  of  the  steam  engine  was  done  away  with, 
the  vessel  housed,  and  every  measure  that  could  add  to 
the  comfort  of  the  crew  adopted.  They  had  abundance 
of  fuel,  and  provisions  that  might  easily  be  ^tended 
to  three  years. . 

#iOn  the  9th  of  January,  1831,  they  were  visited  by  a 
largo  tribe  of  Esquimaux,  who  were  better  dressed  and 
cleaner  than  those  more  to  the  northward.  They  dis- 
played an  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  situation  and 
bearings  of  the  country  over  which  they  had  traveled, 
and  two  of  them  drew  a  very  fair  sketch  of  the  neigh- 
boring coasts,  with  which  they  were  familiar  ;  this 
was  revised  and  corrected  by  a  learned  lady  named 
Teriksin, —  the  females  seeminsr.  from  this  and  former 


\'  "^ 


(UPTAfir   ROSSES  ISOOND  YOTAOB. 


159 


instances,  to  have  a  clear  knowledge  of  the  bydrcgraphy 
and  geoffraphy  of  the  continent,  Days,  straits,  and  riv- 
ers  whicn  they  had  once  traversed. 

On  the  6th  of  April, .  Oommander  Boss,  with  Mr. 
Blanky,  the  chief  mate,  and  two  Esquimaux  guides,  set 
out  to  explore  a  strait  which  was  reported  as  Iju^g  to 
the  westward,  and  which  it  was  hoped  might  leaa  to 
the  western  sea.  After  a  tedious  and  arduous  journey, 
they  arrived,  on  the  third  day,  at  a  bay  facing  to  the 
westward  and  discovered,  further  inland,  an  eictonsive 
lake,  called  by  the  natives  Nie-tyle-le,  whence  a  oroad 
river  flowed  into  the  bay.  Their  guides  informed  them, 
however,  there  was  no  prospect  of  a  water  comunica- 
kion  south  of  their  present  position.  Gapt  Boss  then 
traced  the  coast;^fty  or  sixty  miles  further  south. 

Several  journeys  were  also  made  by  Conmiander 
Ross,  both  inland  and  along  the  bays  and  inlets.  On 
the  1st  of  May,  from  the  top  of  a  high  hill,  he  observed 
a  large  inlet,  which  seemed  to  lead  to  the  western  sea. 
In  order  to  satisfy  himself  on  this  point,  he  set  out 
again  on  the  17th  of  May,  with  provisions  for  three 
weeks,  eight  dogs,  and  tnree  companions.  Having 
crossed  the  great  middle  lake  of  the  isthmus,  he  reached 
his  ibiiner  station,  and  thence  traced  an  inlet  which 
was  found  to  be  the  mouth  of  a  river  named  by  them 
Garry.  From  the  high  hiil,  they  observed  a  chain  of 
lakes  leading  almost  to  Thom's  ]Bay,  the  Victory's  sta- 
tion in  Felix  Harbor.  Proceeding  northwest  along  the 
coast,  they  crossed  the  frozen  surface  of  the  strait  which 
has  since  been  named  after  Sir  James  Boss,  and  came 
to  a  large  island  which  was  called  Matty ;  keeping 
(dbng  its  northern  shore,  and  passing  over  a  narrow 
strait,  which  they  named  after  Wellington,  they  found 
themselves  on  what  was  considered  to  be  the  main- 
land, but  which  the  mere  recent  discoveries  of  Simpson 
have  shown  to  be  an  island,  and  which  now  bears  the 
name  of  Kins  William's  Land.  Still  journeying  on- 
ward, with  difficulties  continually  increasing,  from 
heavy  toil  and  severe  privation,  the  dogs  became  ex- 
hausted with  fatigue,  and  a  burden  itither  than  an  aid 
to  the  travelers. 


160 


PROGRESS  OF  ABOTIO  DISOOYBBT. 


-  One  of  their  greatest  embarrassments  was,  how  to 
distinffuish  between  land  and  sea.  ^*  When  all  is  ioe, 
and  au  one  dazzling  mass  of  white  —  when  the  surface 
of  the  sea  its^  is  tossed  up  and  fixed  into  rocks,  while 
the  land  is,  on  the  contrary,  very  often  flat,  it  is  not 
always  so  easy  a  problem  as  it  mi^ht  seem  on  a  supers 
ficial  view,  to  determine  a  &ct  which  appears  in  words 
to  be  extremely  simple."  Although  their  provisions 
began  to  fall  short,  and  the  party  were  nearly  worn 
out.  Commander  Boss  was  most  desirous  of  maldng  as 
muclf  western  discovery  as  possible ;  theretbre,  depos- 
iting every  thi^g  that  could  be  dispensed  with,  he 
pushed  on,  on  the  28th,  with  only  four  days'  provisions, 
and  reached  Cape  Felix,  the  most  northern  point  of 
this  island,  on  the  tbllowing  day.  Th^  coast  here  took 
a  southwest  direction,  and  there  was  an  unbounded  ex- 
panse of  ocean  in  view.  The  next  morning,  after  hav-  \ 
ing  traveled  twenty  miles  farther,  they  reached  a  point, 
wmch  Ross  called  Point  Victory,  situated  in  lat.  64^ 
46'  19",  lon^.  98°  32'  49",  while  to  the  most  distant  one 
in  view,  estimated  to  be  in  long.  99°  17'  68",  he  gave 
the  name  of  Cape  Franklin.  However  loath  to  turn 
back,  yet  prudence  compelled  them  to  do  so,  for  as 
they  had  only  ten  days'  short  allowance  of  food,  and 
more  than  200  miles  to  traverse,  there  could  not  be  a 
moment's  hesitation  in  adopting  this  step.  A  high 
cairn  of  stones  was  erected  before  leaving,  in  which 
was  deposited  a  narrative  of  their  proceedings. 

The  party  endured  much  fatigue  and  suSering  on 
their  return  journey ;  of  the  ei^t  dogs  only  two  sur- 
vived, and  the  travelers  in  a  most  exhausted  state  ar- 
rived in  the  neighborhood  of  the  large  lakes  on  the  Sth 
of  June,  where  they  fortunately  fell  in  with  a  tribe  of 
natives,  who  received  them  hospitably,  and  supplied 
them  plentifully  with  fish,  so  that  after  a  day's  i-est 
they  resumed  their  journey,  and  reached  the  ship  on 
the  13th.    Captain  Koss  in  the  meanwhile  had  made  a 

f)artial  survey  of  the  Isthmus,  and  discovered  another 
arge  lake,  which  he  named  after  Lady  Melville. 
After  eleven  months'  imprisonment  their  little  ship 


»!irji#r^*#aK*"  ■'.wri-a  v. 


OAPTA^IM    ROes's  «ECX>ND  TOTAAS. 


lei 


once  more  floatod  b»>oyap.t  on  the  waves,  haying  been 
released  from  her  icy  barrier  on  the  17th  of  September, 
but  for  the  next  few  days  made  but  little  progress, 
being  beaten  about  among  the  icebergs,  and  driven 
hither  and  thither  by  the  currents. 

A  change  in  the  weather,  however,  took  place,  and 
on  the  2da  they  were  once  more  frozen  in,  the  sea  in  a 
week  after  exhibiting  one  clear  and  unbroken  surface. 
All  October  was  passed  in  cutting  through  the  ice  into 
a  more  secure  locality,  and  another  dreary  winter  hav- 
ing set  in,  it  became  i  -cessary  to  reduce  the  allowance 
of  provisions.  "  lib  nter  was  one  c  ^  .paralleled 
severity,  tie  thermometer  falling  92°  below  freezing 
point.  jDuring  the  ensuing  spring  a  variety  of  explo- 
ratory joTimeys  were  carried  on,  and.  in  one  of  these 
Commander  Koss  succeeded  in  planting  the  British 
flag  on  the  North  Magnetic  Pole.  The  position  which 
had  been  usually  assigned  to  this  interesting  «pot  by 
the  learned  of  Europe,  was  lat.  70°  N.,  and  long.  98^ 
30'  "W. ;  but  Ross,  by  careful  observations,  determined 
it  to  lie  in  lat.  70°  6'  IV  N.,  and  long.  96°  46'  45"  W., 
to  the  southward  of  Cape  Nikolai,  on  the  western  shore 
of  Boothia.  But  it  has  since  been  found  that  the  cen- 
ter of  magnetic  intensity  is  a  movable  point  revolving 
within  the  frigid  zone. 

"The  place  of  the  observatoir,"  Ross  remarks,  "waa 
as  near  to  the  magnetic  pole  as  the  limited  means  which 
£  possessed  enabled  me  to  determine.  The  amount  of 
the  dip,  as  indicated  by  my  dipping-needle,  was  89** 
69',  being  thus  within  one  minute  of  the  vertical ; 
while  the  proximity  at  least  of  this  pole,  if  not  its  ac- 
tual existence  where  we  stood,  was  further  confirmed 
by  the  action^  or  rather  by  the  total  inaction,  of  the 
several  horizontal  needles  then  in  my  possession." 

Parry's  observations  placed  it  eleven  minutes  distant 
only  from  the  site  determined  by  Ross. 

"As  soon,"  continues  Ross,  "as  I  had  satisfied  my 
own  mind  on  the  subject,  I  made  known  to* the  party 
this  gratifying  result  of  all  onr  joint  labors ;  and  it  was 
then  tVat,  amidst  mutual  congratulations,  we  fixed  tli* 


m 


no&Baai  or  Ascno  disooybbt. 


British  &ig  on  the  spot,  and  took  possession  of  the 
North  Magnetic  Pole  and  its  adjoining  territory  in  the 
name  of  Great  Biitain  and  King  "Wuliam  Iv.  We 
had  abundance  of  materials  for  uuilding  in  the  frag- 
ments of  limestone  that  covered  the  beach,  and  we 
therefore  erected  a  cairn  of  some  magnitude,  under 
which  we  buried  a  canister  containing  a  record  of  the 
interesting  fact,  only  regretting  thdt  we  had  not  the 
means  of  constructing  a  pyramid  of  more  importance, 
and  of  strength  sufficient  to  withstand  the  assaults  of 
time  and  of  the  Esquimaux.  Had  it  been  a  pyramid 
as  larse  as  that  of  Cheops,  I  am  not  quite  sure  that  it 
woula  have  done  more  than  satisfy  our  ambition  under 
the  feelings  of  that  exciting  day." 

On  the  28th  of  August,  1831,  they  contriyed  to  warp 
the  Victory  out  into  the  open  sea,  and  made  sail  on 
the  following  morning,  but  were  soon  beset  with  ice, 
as  on  t^e  former  occasion,  being  once  more  completely 
frozen  in  by  the  27th  of  September. 

On  the  previous  occasion  their  navigation  had  been 
three  miles ;  this  year  it  extended  to  four.  This  pro- 
tracted detention  in  the  ice  made  their  present  posi- 
tion one  of  great  danger  and  peril.  As  there  seemed 
no  proi||>ect  of  extracting  their  vessel,  the  resolution 
was  come  to  of  abandoning  her,  and  making  the  best 
of  their  way  up  the  inlet  to  Fury  Beach,  there  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  boats,  provisions,  and  stores,  wjii^^b 
would  assist  them  in  reaching  Davis'  Straits,  where 
^hey  might  expect  to  fall  in  with  one  of  the  whale 
ships. 

On  the  23d  of  April,  1832,  having  collected  all  that 
was  useful  and  necessary,  the  expedition  set  out,  drag- 
ging their  provisions  and  boats  oyer  a  vast  expanse  of 
rugged  ice.  "  The  loads  being  too  heavy  to  be  car- 
ried at  once,  made  it  necessary  to  go  backward  and 
forward  twice,  and  even  oftener,  the  same  day.  T>iey 
had  to  encounter  dreadful  tempests  of  snow  and  driv\ 
and  to  make  several  circuits  in  order  to  avoid  impas> 
sable  barriers.  The  general  result  was,  that  by  the 
12th  of  May  they  had  traveled  329  miles  to  gain  tliirty 


OAPTAni   boss's  SISCOND   VOTAdC 


163 


in  a  direct  line,  having  in  this  labor  expended  a 
month."  After  this  preliminary  movement,  thev  bade 
a  farewell  to  theif  little  vessel,  nailing  her  coior|  to 
the  mast.  Oa}>t.  Ross  describes  himself  as  deeply  at- 
fected ;  this  bein^  the  first  vessel  he  had  been  obliged 
to  abandon  of  thirty-six  in  which  he  had  served  dm* 
ing  the  course  of  forty-two  years.  On  the  9th  of  June, 
Commander  Boss  and  two  otheri,  with  a  fortnight's 
provisions,  left  the  main  body,  who  were  more  heav- 
ily loaded,  to  ascertain  the  state  of  the  boats  and  snp- 
plies  at  Fury  Beach.  Betuming  they  met  their  com- 
rades on  the  25th  of  June,  reporting  that  they  had 
foun<l  three  of  the  boats  washed  away,  but  enough  still 
letl;  for  their  purpose,  and  all  the  provisions  were  in 
good  condition.  The  remainder  of  the  journey  was 
accomplished  by  the  whole  party  in  a  week,  and  on 
the  1st  of  July  they  rearea  a  canvas  mansion,  to 
which  they  gave  the  name  of  Somerset  HAej  and 
enjoyed  a  hearty  meal. 

By  the  1st  of  August  the  boats  were  rendered  ser- 
viceable, and  a  considerable  extent  of  6pen  sea  being 
visible,  they  set  out,  and  after  much  buneting  among 
the  ice  in  their  frail  shallops,  reached  the  mouth  ot 
the  inlet  by  the  end  of  August.  After  sevetal  fruit- 
less-attempts to  run  along  Barrow's  Strait,  the  obstruc- 
tions of  the  ice  obliged  them  to  haul  the  boats  on  shore, 
and  pitch  their  tents.  Barrow's  Strait  was  found,  from 
repeated  surveys,  to  be  one  impenetrable  mass  of  ice. 
After  lingering  here  tHl  the  third  week  in  September, 
it  was  unanimously  agreed  that  their  only  resource 
was  to  fall  back  on  the  stores  at  Fury  Beach,  and  there 
spend  their  fourth  winter.  They  were  only  able  to  get 
half  the  distance  iir  the  boats,  which  were  hauled  on 
shore  in  Batty  Bay  on  the  24th  of  September,  and 
the  rest  of  their  journey  continued  on  foot,  the  pro- 
visions being  dragged  on  sledges.  On  the  7th  of  Oc- 
tober they  once  more  reached  their  home  at  the  scene 
of  the  wreck.  They  now  managed  to  shelter  their 
canvas  tout  by  a  wall  of  snow,  and  setting  up  an  ex- 
tra stove,  made  themselves  tolerably  comfortable  until 

G* 


164 


PBoamsiBs  or  abotio  msootebt. 


4 


the  increaainff  severity  of  the  winter,  and  rigor  of 
the  cold,  added  to  the  tempestnons  weather,  made 
thjBin  perfect  prisoners,  and  sorely  tried  their  patience. 
Senrvy  «iow  becran  to  attack  several  of  the  party,  and 
on  the  16th  of  February,  1883,  Thomas,  the  carpenter, 
jfeU  a  victim  to  it,  and  two  others  died.  ^^  Their  situ- 
ation was  becoming  truly  awful,  since,  if  they  were 
not  liberated  in  the  ensuing  summer,  little  prospect 
appeared  of  their  surviving  another  year.  It  was 
necessary  to  make  a  reduction  in  the  allowance  of 
preserved  meats ;  bread  was  somewhat  deficient,  and 
the  stock  of  wine  and  spirits  was  entirely  exhausted. 
However,  as  they  caught  a  few  foxes,  which  were  con- 
sidered a  delicacy,  and  there  was  plenty  of  flour, 
sngar,  soups,  and  vegetables,  a  diet  could  be  easily 
arranged  sufiScient  to  support  the  party." 

While  the  ice  remained  firm,  advantage  was  taken 
of  tho#pring  to  carry  forward  a  stock  of  provisions  to 
Batty  Say,  and  this,  .though  only  thirty-two  miles,  oc- 
cupied them  a  whole  month,  owing  to  their  reduced 
numbers  from  sickness  and  heavy  loads,  with  the  jour- 
neyings  to  and  fro,  having  to  go  over  the  ground  eight 
times. 

On  the  8th  of  July  they  finally  -abandoned  thir^  de- 
pot, and  encamped  on  the  12th  at  their  boat  station  in 
jBatty  Bay,  where  the  aspect  of  the  sea  was  watched 
with  intense  anxie1<y  for  more  than  a  month.  On  the 
15th  of  August,  taking  advantage  of  a  lane  of  water 
which  led  to  the  northward,  the  party  embarked,  and 
on  the  following  morning  had  got  as  far  as  the  turn- 
ing point  of  their  last  year's  expedition.  Making  their 
WAj  slowly  among  the  masses  of  ice  with  which  the 
inlet  was  encumbered,  on  the  17th  they  found  the  wide 
expanse  of  Barrow's  Strait  open  before  them,  and  nav- 
igable, and  reached  to  within  twelve  miles  of  Gape 
York.  Pushing  on  with  renewed  spirits,  alternately 
rowing  and  sailing,  en  the  night  of  the  25th  they 
rested  in  a  good  harbor  on  the  eastern  shore  of  Kavy 
Board  Inlet.  At  four  on  the  following  morning  they 
were  rou'^ad  from  their  slumbers  by  the  joyful  mtelli- 


'•«# 


QAITAIN   KOM^S  B£COND  VOTAOB. 


165 


geiice  of  a  ship  being  in  eight,  and  never  did  men 
more  hurriedly  and  energetieally  set  out ;  but  the  ele* 
ments  conspiring  against  them,  after  being  baffled  by 
calms  and  currents,  they  had  the  misery  to  see  the 
ship  leave  them  with  a  fair  breeze,  and  found  it  im- 
possible to  overtake  her,  or  make  themselves  seen.  A 
few  houra  later,  however,  their  despair  was  relieved  by 
the  sight  of  another  vessel  which  was  lyin^  to  in  a  oalm» 
By  dint  of  hard  rowing  they  were  this  time  more  for 
tunate,  and  soon  came  up  with  her ;  she  proved  to  be 
the  Isabella,  of  Hull,  the  very  ship  in  which  Boss  had 
made  his  first  voyage  to  these  seas.  Capt.  Koss  was 
told  circumstantially  of  his  own  death,  &c,,  two  years 
previously^  and  he  had  some  difficulty  in  convincing 
them  that  it  was  really  he  and  his  party  who  now  stood 
before  them.  So  great  was  the  joy  with  which  they 
were  received,  that  the  Isabella  manned  her  yards, 
and  her  former  commander  and  his  gallant  JHind  ox 
adventurers  were  saluted  with  three  hearty^iiieers. 
The  scene  on  board  can  scarcely  be  descrilled ;  each 
of  the  crew  vied  with  the  other  in  assisting  and  com- 
forting the  party,  and  it  cannot  better  be  told  than  in 
Boss's  own  words :  — 

'^  The  ludicrous  soon  took  place  of  all  other  feelings  ; 
in  such  a  crowd,  and  such  confusion,  all  serious  thought 
was  impossible,  while  the  new  buoyancy  of  our  spirits 
made  us  abundantly  willing  to  be  amused  by  the  scene 
which  now  opened.  Every  man  was  hungry,  and  was 
to  be  fed ;  all  were  raeged,  and  were  to  be  clothed ; 
there  was  not  one  to  whom  washing  was  not  indispen- 
sable, nor  one  whom  his  beard  did  not  deprive  of  all 
human  semblance.  All,  every  thing  too,  was  to  be  done 
at  once  :  it  was  washing,  shaving,  dressing,  eating,  all 
intermingled  ;  it  was  all  the  materials  of  each  jumbled 
together,  while  in  the  midst  of  all  there  were  intermina- 
ble questions  to  be  asked  and  answered  on  both  sides  * 
Iho  adventures  of  the  Yictory,  our  own  escapes,  the 
politics  of  England,  and  the  news  which  was  now  four 
jfears  old. 

"But  all  subsided  into  peace  at  ^sj;.    T^e  sick  wer^ 


16« 


rsooKBBs  or  asotic  discovert. 


^' 


Mcommodated,  the  seamen  disposed  of.  and  all  was 
done  for  us  which  care  and  kindness  conld  perform. 

^^  Night  at  length  brought  quiet  and  serious  thoughts, 
and  I  trust  there  was  not  a  man  among  us  who  dia  not 
then  express,  where  it  was  due,  his  gratitude  for  that 
interposition  which  had  raised  ns  all  from  a  despair 
which  none  could  now  forget,  and  had  brought  us  irom 
the  very  borders  of  a  most  distant  grave,  to  life  and 
friends  and  civilization.  Long  accustomed,  however, 
to  a  cold  bed  on  the  hard  snow  or  the  bare  rock,  few 
could  sleep  amid  the  comfort  of  our  new  accommoda- 
tions. I  was  myself  compelled  to  leave  the  bed  which 
had  been  kindly  assigned  me,  and  take  my  abode  in  a 
chair  for  the  night,  nor  did  it  fare  much  better  with  the 
rest  It  was  for  time  to  reconcile  us  to  this  sudden  and 
violent  change,  to  break  through  what  had  become 
habit,  and  inure  us  once  more  to  the  usages  of  our\ 
formeajipkvs." 

The  nabella  remained  some  time  longer  to  prosecute 
the  fishery,  and  left  Davis'  Strait  on  ner  homeward 
passage  on  the  80th  September.  On  the  12th  of  Oc- 
tober thev  made  the  Orkney  Islands,  and  arrived  at 
Hull  on  the  18th.  Tlie  bolc'rexplorers,  who  had  long 
been  given  up  as  lost,  were  looked  upon  as  men  risen 
from  the  grave,  and  met  and  escorted  by  crowds  of 
sympathizers.  A  public  entertainment  was  given  to 
them  by  the  townspedple,  at  which  the  freedom  of  the 
town  was  presentea  to  Captain  Boss,  and  next  day  he 
left  for  London,  to  report  to  the  Admiralty,  and  was 
honored  by  a  presentation  to  the  king  at  Windsor. 

The  Admiralty  liberally  rewarded  all  the  parties, 
except  indeed  Gaptain  Ross.  Commander  J.  U.  Ross 
was  appointed  to  the  guardship  at  Portsmouth  to  com- 
plete his  period  of  service,  and  then  received  his  post 
rank.  Mr.  Thom,  the  purser,  Mr.  M'Diarmid,  the  sur- 
geon, and  the  petty  officers,  were  appointed  to  good 
situations  in  the  navy.  The  seamen  received  the  usual 
double  pay  given  to  arctic  explorers,  up  to  the  time 
of  leaving  their  ship,  and  fi|ll  pay  from  that  date  until 
tlieir  ^rriyaV  in  England. 


\  ■ 


eATTAni  KOflB^fl  SROOKD  TOTAOt. 


167 


A  eommitteo  of  the  House  of  GommonB  took  np  the 
ease  of  Oaptain  Koss  early  in  the  session  of  1834,  and 
on  their  recommendation  5,0002. was  granted  him  as  a 
remuneration  for  his  pecuniary  outlay  and  privations. 

A  baronetcy,  on  the  recommendation  ot  the  same 
committee,  was  also  conferred  by  his  Majesty  William 
lY.  on  Mr.  Felix  Boothi 

In  looking  back  on  the  results  of  this  yoyage,  no  im- 
partial inquirer  can  deny  to  Captain  Ross  the  merit  of 
navineisfiected  much  good  by  tracing  and  surveying 
the  wnole  of  the  long  western  coast  of  RejB^ent  Lile^ 
provinff  Boothia  to  be  a  peninsula,  and  settmff  at  rest 
the  prooability  of  any  navigable  outlet  being  discovered 
from  this  inlet  to  the  Polar  Sea.  The  lake  ,  rivers  and 
islands  which  were  examined,  proved  with  sufficifut 
accuracy  the  correctness  of  the  information  fumi'^hed  to 
Parry  by  the  Esquimaux. 

To  Commander  James  Ross  is  due  the  dlPit  of 
resolving  many  important  scientific  questions,  such  as 
the  conmination  of  light  with  magnetism,  fixinr:  the 
exact  position  of  the  ma^etic  pole.  He  was  ah  o  the 
only  person  in  the  expedition  competent  to  make  obser- 
vations in  geology,  natural  history  and  botany.  Out 
of  about  7C^  miles  of  new  land  explored.  Commander 
Ross,  in  the  expeditions  which  he  planned  and  con- 
ducted, discovered  nearly  500.  He  had,  up  tC'  this 
(ime,  passed  fourteen  summers  and  eight  winters  in 
t^iese  seas. 

Thd  late  Sir  John  farrow,  in  his  ^*  Narrative  of  Yoy- 
Ages  of  Discovery  and  Research,^'  p.  518,  in  opposition 
to  Ross's  opinion,  asserted  that  Boothia  was  not  joined 
to  the  continent,  but  that  they  were  **  #"  c>^  upletely  divi- 
ded by  a  navigable  strait,  ten  miles  wid'e  and  upward, 
leading  past  Back's  Estuary,  and  into  the  Gulf  (of 
Boothia,)  of  which  the  proper  naine  is  Akkolee,  not 
Boothia ;  and  moreover,  tnat  th'>  t  svo  seas  flow  as  freely 
into  each  other  as  Lancaster  Sound  does  into  the  Polar 
6ef(."  This  assumption  has  since  been  shown  to  be 
incorrect.  Capt.  Ross  asserts  there  is  a  difference  in 
khe  level  of  these  two  seas.  ^  ■* 


168 


PSOGBESB  09  AROTEO  DISOOVlOtT. 


0 


I  may  here  fitly  take  a  review  of  Captain  K»,48's  ser- 
vices. He  entered  the  navy  in  1790,  served  fifteen  years 
as  a  midshipman,  seven  as  a  lieutenant,  and  seven  as  a 
commander,  and  was  posted  on  the  7th  of  December, 
1818,  and  appointed  to  the  command  of  the  first  arctic 
oxpedition  ot  this  century.  On  his  return  he  received 
many  marks  of  faror  from  continental  sovereigns,  was  * 

.  knighted  and  made  a  Companion  of  the  Bath  on  tlio 
24th  of  December,  1834 ;  made  a  Commander  of  the 

vSword  of  Sweden,  a  Knight  of  the  Second  Class  of  St 
Anne  of  Prussia  (in  diamonds,)  Second  Class  of  tho 

rLegion  of  Honor,  and  of  the  Red  Easle  of  Prussia,  and 
of  Leopold  of  Belgium.  Received  the  royal  preminn 
from  tho  Geographical  Society  of  London,  in  1833,  fo 

,^his  discoveries  in  the  arctic  regions ;  also  cold  medal* 
from  the  Geographical  Society  of  Paris,  and  the  RoyM 

.Societies  of  Sweden,  Austria,  and  Denmark.  The  fre*^ 
dom^ipi'the  cities  of  London,  Liverpool,  and  Bristo)  *, 
six  gold  snuff-boxes  from  Russia,  Holland,  Denmark 
Austria,  London  and  Baden;  a  sword  valued  at  10(* 
guineas  from  the  Patriotic  Fund,  for  his  sufferings,  hav 
mg  been  wounded  thirteen  times  in  three  difierent 
actions  during  the  war ;  and  one  of  the  value  of  200^. 
from  the  King  of  Sweden,  for  service  in  the  Baltic  and 
the  White  Sea.  On  the  8th  of  March,  1839,  he  was 
appointed  to  the  lucrative  post  of  British  consul  at 
Stockholm,  which  he  held  for  six  years. 

Gaptaik  Back's  Land  Journey,  1833-36.     I 

FouB  years  having  elapsed  without  any  tidings  being 
received  of  Capt.  Iwss  and  his  crew,  it  began  .  to  bo 
generally  feared  in  England  that  they  had  been  added 
to  the  number  of  former  sufferers,  in  the  prosecution  of 
their  arduous  undertaking. 

Dr.  Richardson,  wbo  nad  himself  undergone  such 
fnghtftil  perils  in  the  arctio  regions  with  Franklin,  was 
the  first  to  call  public  attention  to  the  subject,  in  a  letter 
to  the  Geographical  Society,  in  which  he  suggested  a 
project  for  relieving  them^  if  stiP  alive  and  to  be  found ; 


OAFfAIN  BAOK^  LAND  JOUJUniT. 


169 


and  at  the  same  time  volmiteered  his  services  to  the 
Colonial  Secretary  of  the  day,  to  conduct  an  exploring 


■"aS 


Ithoueh  the  expedition  of  Capt.  Boss  was  not  under- 
taken under  the  auspices  of  ffovemment,  it  became  a 
national  concern  to  ascertain  the  ultimate  fate  of  it,  and 
to  make,  some  effort  for  the  relief  of  the  party,  whose 
home  at  that  time  might  be  the  boisterous  sea,  or  whose 
shelter  the  snow  hut  or  the  floating  iceberg.  Dr.  Rich- 
ard. >n  Imposed  to  proceed  from  Hudson's  Bay,  in  a 
northwest  direction  to  Coronation  Gulf,  where  he  was 
to  commence  his  search  in  an  easterly  direction.  Pass- 
ing to  the  north,  along  the  eastern  side  of  this  gulf,  he 
would  arrive  at  Point  Turnagain,  the  eastern  point  of 
his  own  former  discovery.  Having  accomplished  this, 
he  would  continue  his  search  toward  the  eastward  until 
he  reached  Melville  Island,  thus  perfecting  geographical 
discovery  in  that  quarter,  and  a  continued  coiM  line 
might  be  laid  down  from  the  Fury  and  Hecla  Strait  to 
Beechey  Point,  leaving  only  the  small  space  between 
Franklin's  discovenr  and  that  of  the  Blossom  unexplored. 
The  proposal  was  mvorably  received ;  but  owinff  to  the 
political  state  of  the  country  at  the  time,  the  oner  was 
not  accepted. 

A  meeting  was  held  in  November,  1832,  at  the  rooms 
of  the  Horticultural  Society,  in  Begent  street,  to  obtain 
funds,  and  arrange  for  flttins  out  a  private  relief  expe- 
dition, as  the  Admiralty  and  Government  were  unable 
to  do  this  officially,  in  consequence  of  Captain  Boss's 
expedition  not  being  a  public  one.  Sir  George  Cock- 
burn  took  the  chair,  and  justly  observed  that  those  offi- 
cers who  devoted  their  time  tq  the  service  of  science, 
and  braved  in  its  pursuit  the  dangers  of  unknown  and 
ungenial  climates,  demanded  the  sympathy  and  assist- 
ance of  all.  Great  Britain  had  taken  the  lead  in  geo- 
graphical discovery,  and  there  was  not  one  in  this  coun- 
try who  did  not  feel  pride  and  honor  in  the  fame  she 
bad  attained  by  the  expeditions  of  Parry  and  Franklin  ; 
but  if  we  wished  to  create  future  Parrys  and  Franklins, 
if  we  wished  to  encourage  British  eaterprise  and  com 


^ 


m 


PKOOBK8S  OF  AKCrnO   DI800VESY. 


^; 


ace,  we  iniist  provo  ^fatst  the  ofMcer  who  is  out  of  .sight 
ot  hift  eouutvymaa  is  not  forgotten ;  tiiat  there  is  con 
si  deration  for  his  sufferings,  and  appreciation  of  his 
spirit.  This  redaction  will  cheer  him  in  tiie  hour  of 
trial,  and  will  permit  him,  whes  suirroimded  by  dangers 
and  privations,  to  indulge  in  hope,  the  matest  blessing 
of  man.  Captain  G«orge  Bade,  B.  N.,  who  was  in 
Italy  when  the  subject  was  first  mooted,  hastened  to 
England,  and  offerea  to  lead  the  party,  imd  his  services 
were  accepted.  A  subscription  was  enterifllP  into,  to 
defray  the  necessary  expenses,  and  upward  of  6000Z. 
was  raised ;  of  this  sum,  at  the  recommendation  of  Loixl 
Goderich,  the  then  Secretary  of  State,  the  Treasury  con- 
tributed 2000;. 

After  an  interview  with  the  king  at  Brighton,  to  which 
he  was  specially  summoned.  Captain  Bade  made  prepa- 
rations for  his  journey,  and  laid  down  his  plan  of  operai- 
tions^In  order  to  facilitate  his  views,  and  give  him 
greater  authority  over  his  men,  special  instructions  and 
authoritv  were  issued  by  the  Colonial  Office,  and  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company  granted  him  a  commission  in 
their  service,  and  piaced  every  assistance  at  his  disposal 
throughout  their  territoiy  in  l^orth  America. 

Every  thinff  being  definit^  arranged,  Capt.  Back, 
accompanied  by  Dr.  Kichard  King  as  surgeon  and  natu- 
nUist,  with  three  men  who  had  been  on  me  expedition 
with  Franklin,  left  Liveroool  on  the  IT-th  of  February, 
1833,  in  one  c^*  the  New  York  packet  ships,  and  arrived 
in  Am^ica  atler  a  stormy  passage  of  thirty-five  days. 
He  p'oceeded  on  to  Montreal,  whare  he  had  great  diffi- 
culty in  preventing  two  of  the  m^i  from  leaving  him, 
as  their  hearts  began  to  &il  them  at  the  prospect  of 
the  severe  journey  witb  its  attendant  difficulties,  which 
they  had  to  encoux^r. 

Four  volunteers  ik)m  tiie  Boyal  Artillery  corps  hero 
joined  him,  and  some  voyageurs  having  been  engaged, 
the  party  left,  in  two  canoes,  on  the  S5th  of  April.  Two 
of  his  party  deserted  from  him  in  the  Ottawa  river. 
,  On  the  28th  of  June,  having  obtained  his  comple- 
ttient  of  men,  ^e  may  be  said  to  ha^e  commenced  his 


eAFTAIN  BACKUS  LAND  WVmfWr, 


171 


journey.  They  suffered  dreadtVilly  from  myrxads  of 
6and-flie$  and  musquitoes,  being  so  diefiffuroa  by  their 
attacks  that  their  features  could  scarcely  oe  recognised. 
Horse-flies,  appropriately  styled  ^^  bull^clogs,'*  were  an- 
other di'eadAii  pest,  wbich  pertinaciously  gorged  them- 
selves, like  the  leech,  until  they  seemed  ready  to  burst. 
'^It  is  in  vain  to  attempt  to  defend  yourself  against 
these  puny  bloodsuckers';  though  you  cmsh  thousands 
of  them,  tens  of  thousands  arise  to  ayenffii  the  death  of 
their  cdjjtiiiiions,  and  you  very  soon  discover  that  the 
conflict  \^ich  you  are  waging  is  one  in  which  you  are 
sure  to  be  defeated.  So  great  at  last  are  the  pains  and 
fatigue  in  buffeting  awav  this  attacking  ibree,  that  in 
despair  you  throw  yourself,  half  suffocated,  in  a  blanket, 
with  your  &ce  upon  the  ground,  and  snatch  a  few  min- 
utes of  sleepless  rest."  Capt.  Back  adds  that  the  vig- 
orous and  unint«rmittinff  assaults  of  these  tormenting 
pests  conveyed  the  mond  lesson  of  man's  helplefsness, 
since,  with  all  our  boasted  strength,  we  are  unable  to 
repel  these  feeble  atoms  of  creation.  ^*  How,"  he  says, 
''  can  I  possibly  ^ive  an  idea  of  the  torment  we  endured 
from  the  sand-^es  ?  As  we  divided  into  the  confined 
and  suffocating  chasms,  or  waded  through  the  close 
swamps,  they  rose  in  clouds,  actually  darkening  the  air ; 
to  see  or  to  speak  was  equally  difficult,  for  they  lushed 
at  every  undefended  part,  and  flxed  their  poisonous 
fangs  in  an  instant.  Our  faces  streamed  with  blood,  as 
if  leeches  had  been  applied,  and  there  was  a  burning 
and  irritating  pain,  rollowed  by  immediate  inflamma- 
tion, and  pri^ucing  giddiness,  which  almost  drove  us 
mad,  and  caused  us  to  moaii  with  pain  and  agony. 

At  the  Pine  port&^e,  CSptain  Back  engaffed  the 
services  of  A.  E.  McLeod,  in  the  employ  of  tne  Hud- 
Bon^s  Bay  Company,  and  who  had  been  fixed  upon  by 
Governor  Simpson,  to  aid  the  expedition.  lie  was 
accompanied  by  his  wife,  three  cuildren,  and  a  ser- 
vant; and  had  just  returned  from  the  Mackenzie  River, 
with  a  large  cargo  of  furs.  The  whole  family  were  at- 
tached to  the  party,  and  after  some  detentions  of  a 
general  and  unifhportant  character  tk\ey  arrived  at 
11 


m 


raoeKKSs  OP  knatro  msoovsRY. 


i,» 


Fort  Ohipewysn  on  the  20th  of  July.  Fort  Eesoiu 
tian,  on  Great  Slave  Lake,  was  reached  on  the  8th  of 
Auffost. 

Tne  odd  assamblage  of  goods  and  vojagenrs  in  theii 
encampment  are  thus  graphically  described  by  the 
traveler,  as  he  glanced  around  him. 

*'  At  my  feet  was  a  rolled  bundle  in  oil-cloth,  con- 
taining some  three  blankets,  called  a  bed ;  near  it  a 
piece  of  dried  buffalo,  fanciMly  oniamented  with  long 
black  hairs,  which  no  art,  alas,  can  prevent  Am  insin- 
uating themselves  between  the  teeth,  as  yon  laboriously 
masticate  the  tough,  hard  flesh ;  then  a  tolerabl}'  clean 
napkin,  spread  by  way  of  table-cloth,  on  a  red  piece  of 
canvas,  and  supporting  a  tea-pot,  some  biscuits,  and  a 
salt-cellar ;  near  this  a  tin  plate,  close  by  a  square  kind 
of  box  or  safe  of  the  same  material,  rich  with  a  pale, 
greasy  hair,  the  produce pf  the  colony  at  Red  Riven; 
and  ^e  last,  the  f&r-renowned pemmican,  unquestion- 
ably the  best  food  of  the  country  for  expeditions  such 
as  ours.  Behind  me  were  two  Soxes  containing  astro- 
nomical instr'iments,  and  a  sextant  lying  on  the  ground, 
while  the  different  corners  of  the  ten^were  occupied 
by  a  washing  apparatus,  a  gun,  an  Indian  shot-poucb, 
bags,  basins,  ana  an  unhappy-looking  japanned  pot, 
whose  melancl)oly  bumps  and  hollows  seemed  to  re- 
proach me  for  many  a  bruise  endured  upon  the  rocks 
and  portages  between  Montreal  and  Lake  Winnipeck. 
Nor  were  my  crew  less  motley  than  the  furniture  of 
the  tent.  It  consisted  of  an  £!nglishman,  a  man  from 
Stornaway,  two  Canadians,  two  Metifs  or  half-breeds, 
and  three  Iroquois  Indians.  Babel  could  not  have  pro- 
duced a  worse  confusion  of  unharmonious  sounds  than 
was  the  conversation  they  kept  up.'' 

Having  obtained  at  Fort  Resolution  all  possible  in* 
formation,  from  the  Indians  luid  others,  relative  to  tlie 
course  of  the  northern  rivers  of  which  he  was  in  search, 
he  divided  his  crew  into  two  parties,  five  of  whom  were 
left  as  an  escort  &>r  Mr.  McLeod,  and  four  were  to  ac- 
company himself  in  search  of  the  Great  Fish  River, 
Aince  appropriately  earned  afler  Back  himself. 


CAVTAXK  back's  LAUD  JOOSIIXT. 


178 


On  the  19th  of  August  they  began  the  ascent  oi  the 
Hoar  Frost  Kiver,  whose  course  was  a  series  of  the 
most  fearful  cascades  and  rapids.    The  woods  here 
were  so  thick  as  to  render  them  almost  impervious 
consisting  chiefly  of  stunted  firs,  which  occasioned  in 
finite  trouble  to  the  party  to  force  th«ir  way  through 
added  to  which,  they  had  to  clamber  over  fallen  trees.  - 
through  rivulets,  and  over  bogs  and  swampe,  until  the 
difficulties  appeared  so  appSling,  as  almost  to  dis- 
hearten^ipe  party  from  prosecuting  their  journey.   The 
heart  of  Captain  Back  w&s,  however,  of  too  stem  a  cast 
to  be  dispirited  by  difficulties,  at  which  less  persever 
\ng  explorers  would  have  turned  away  discomfited, 
and  cheering  on  his  men,  like  a  bold  and  gallant  leader, 
the  first  in  the  advance  of  danger,  they  arrived  at  length 
in  an  open  space,  where  they  rested  for  awhile  to  recruit 
their  exhausted  str^igth.    The  |^ce  was,  indeed,  one 
of  barrenness  and  desolation ;  crag  was  piled  upon  crag 
to  the  height  of  2000  feet  from  the  base,  and  the  course 
of  the  river  here,  in  a  state  of  contraction,  was  marked 
by  an  uninterrupted  line  of  foam. 

However  gc^at  the  beauty  of  the  scenery  may  Le, 
and  however  resolute  may  be  the  will,  severe  toil  will 
at  length  relax  the  spirits,  and  bring  a  kind  of  despon- 
dency upon  a  heart  naturally  bold  and  undaunted.  This 
was  tbund  particularly  the  case  now  with  the  interpre- 
ter, who  became  a  dead  weight  upon  the  party.  Bapid 
now  succeeded  rapid ;  scarcely  had  they  surmounted 
one  &11  than  another  presented  itself,  rising  like  an  am- 
phitheater before  them  to  the  height  of  fifty  feet.  They 
tiowever,  gained  at  length  J]^e  ascent  of  this  turbulen 
and  ~  unfriendly  river,  tne^mantic  beauty  and  wild 
scenery  of  which  were  strikingly  grand,  and  after  pass 
ing  successively  a  series  of  portages,  rapids,  falls,  lakesi, 
and  rivers,  on  the  27th  Back  observed  from  the  summit 
of  a  high  hill  a  very  large  lake  full  aH  deep  bays  and 
islands,  and  which  has  been  named  Aylmer  Lake,  after 
the  Governor-General  of  Canada  at  that  time.  The 
boat  was  sent  out  wiUi  three  men  to  search  for  the*lake, 
or  outlet  of  the  river,  which  they  discovered  on  the  see* 


^f4 


PBOaKFSB  OF  ASCnO  DISOOWiftT. 


ond  daj,  and  Captain  Back  himself,  during  their  ab* 
sence,  aUo  accidentally  discovered  its  sonrce  in  the 
Sand  Hill  Lake,  not  &r  from  his  encampment.  !Not 
prouder  was  Braoe  when  he  stood  on  the  greiBn  sod 
whidi  cOTers  the  source  of  the  Kile,  than  was  Captain 
Back  when  he  foimd  that  he  was  standing  at  the  source 
of  a  river,  the  existence  of  which  was  Imown,  but  the 
course  of  wMch  was  a  problem,  no  traveler  had  yet  ven- 
tured to  solve.  Yielaing  to  that  pleasurable  emotion 
which  discoverers,  in  the  first  bound  of  theii^ltansport,' 
may  be  pardoned  for  indulging,  Back  tells  us  he  threw 
himself  down  on  the  bank  ana  drank  a  hearty  draught 
of  the  Hmpid  water. 

<<For  this  occasion,*'  he  adda,  '^I  had  reserved  a  li^ 
tie  ^rog,  and  need  hardly  say  with  what  cheerfulness 
it  was  shared  among  the  crew,  whose  welcome  tidings 
had  verified  the  notion  of  Dr.  Richardson  and  mvs^ 
and  thus  placed  beyond  doubt  the  existence  of  the 
Thlew-ee-cndb,  or  Great  Fish  River. 

On  the  30<^  of  Auffust,  they  began  to  move  toward 
the  river,  but  on  reaching  Musk-ox  Lake,  it  was  found 
impossible  to  stand  the  force  of  the  rapids  in  their  frail 
cuioe,  and  as  winter  was  approaching,  their  return  to 
the  rendezvous  on  ^ave  Lake  was  determined  on.     » 

At  Clinton  Colden  Lake,  some  Indians  visited  them 
from  the  Chief  Akaitcho,  who,  it  will  be  remembered, 
was  the  guide  of  Sir  Jolm  Franklin.  Two  of  these  In- 
dians remembered  Captain  Back,  one  huving  accom- 
panied him  to  the  Coppermine  River,  on  i^ai^n's 
first  expedition. 

At  the  Cat  or  Artiller^yLake,  they  had  to  abandon 
their  canoe,  and  per£>rm  ill  rest  of  the  journey  on  foot 
over  precipitous  rocks,  through  fnghtfol  gorges  and  ra- 
vines, heaped  with  masses  ofgr&mte,  and  along  narrow 
ledges,  where  a  false  step  womd  have  been  fatal. 

At  Fort  Reliaace,  the  party  found  Mr.  McLeod  had, 
during  their  absence,  erected  the  frame-work  of  a  com- 
fortable residence  for  them,  and  all  hands  set  to  work 
t»  conplete  it  After  many  obstacles  and  difficulties, 
ii  was  nnished. 


GAITAIN    sack's  LAND  J017BNBT. 


m 


Dr.  Khis  joined  them  on  iho  16th  ni  September^  witk 
two  laden  oateanx.  «  '» 

Ob  the  5th  of  November,  thej  exchanged  their  ooM 
tents  for  the  new  house,  which  was  fifty  fbet  long  bj 
thirty  broad,  and  contained  foor  rooms,  besides  a  spa- 
clous  hall  in  the  center,  for  the  reception  and  accom- 
modation of  the  Indians,  to  which  a  sort  of  rude  kitchen 
was  attached. 

As  the  winter  advanced,  bands  of  starving  Indians 
continued  to  arrive,  in  the  hope  of  obtaining  some  re- 
lief, as  little  or  nothing  was  to  be  procured  by  hunting. 
They  would  stand  around  while  the  men  were  taking 
their  meaL,  watchir  every  mouthful  with  the  most 
lon^^ing,  imploring  look,  but  yet  never  uttered  a  com- 
plaint. 

At  other  times  they  would,  seated  round  the  fire,  oc^ 
cupy  themselves  in  roasting  "tind  devouring  small  bits 
of  their  reindeer  garments,  which,  even  when  entire, 
afforded  them  a  very  insuiflcient  protection  against  a 
temperature  of  102®  below  freezing  point. 

Tne  sufi!erin^  of  the  poor  Indians  at  this  period  are 
described  as  frightfuL  ^'Famine  with  her  gaunt  and 
bony  arm,"  says  Back,  "  pursued  them  at  every  turn, 
withered  their  energies,  and  strewed  them  lifeless  on 
the  cold  bosom  of  the  snow."  It  was  impossible^  to 
afford  relief  out  of  their  scanty  store  to  all,  but  even 
small  portions  of  the  mouldy  pemmican  intended  for 
the  dogs,  unpalatable  as  it  was,  was  gladly  received, 
and  saved  many  from  perishing.  '*  O&n,"  adds  Back, 
'^  did  I  share  my  own  plate  ^th  the  children  whose 
helpless  state  and  piteous  cries  were  peculiarly  distress- 
ing ;  compassion  f<»*  the  fai^grown  may,  or  may  not, 
be  felt,  but  that  he^rt  must  to  cased  in  steel  which  is 
insensible  to  the  cry  of  a  child  for  food." 

At  this  critical  juncture,  Akaitcho  made  his  appear- 
ance with  an  opportune  supply  of  a  little  meat,  which 
in  some  measure  enabled  Captain  Back  to  relieve  the 
sufferers  around  him,  many  of  whom,  to  his  great  de- 
light, went  away  with  Akaitcha  The  stock  of  meat 
was  soon  ezhamted,  and  they  had  to  open  their  lete^. 


IW. 


PBOOBIM  OV  ABOTIO  DISOOYSBT. 


mie«n.  The  offiMrs  contented  themseWes  with  the 
Bhort  supply  of  half  a  pound  a  day,  but  the  laboring 
mei^  eould  not  do  with  less  than  a  pound  and  three- 

2uartersc  l^e  cold  now  set  in  with  an  intensity  which 
laptain  Back  had  never  before  experienced, — the  ther* 
mometer,  on  the  17th  of  January,  oeing  70°  below  zera 
^'  Such  indeed,  (he  says,)  was  the  abstraction  of  heat, 
that  with  eight  larse  logs  of  dry  wood  on  the  fire,  I 
could  not  get  the  uiermometer  higher  than  12°  below 
zero.  Ink  and  paint  froze.  The  sextant  cas^  and 
boxes  of  seasoned  wood,  principally  fir,  all  split  sThe 
skin  of  the  hands  became  dry,  cracked  and  (^ened 
into  unsightly  and  smarting  gashes,  which  we  were 
obliged  to  anoint  with  grease.  On  one  occasion,  after 
washing  my  face  within  three  feet  of  the  fire,  my  hair 
was  actually  clotted  with  ice  before  I  had  time  to  dry  it.'* 
The  hunters  suffered  severely  from  the  intensity  oi\ 
iie  cold,  and  compared  the  sensation  of  handling  their 
guns  to  that  of  touching  red-hot  iron,  and  so  excessive 
was  the  pain,  that  th^y  were  obliged  to  wrap  thonei  of 
leather  round  the  triggers  to  keep  their  fingers  &om 
coming  into  contact  with  the  steel. 

The  sufferings  which  the  party  now  endured  were 
great,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  exemplary  conduct 
of  ^aitcho  in  procuring  them  game,  it  is  to  l>e  doubted 
whether  any  would  have  survived  to  tell  the  misery 
they  had  endured.  The  sentiments  of  this  worthy  sav 
age  were  nobly  expressed  — '^  The  ^'^eat  chief  tniists  in 
Ufli,  and  it  is  bietter  that  ten  Indians  perish,  than  that 
one  white  man  should  perish  through  our  negligence 
and  breach  <^  faith." 

On  the  14th  of  rnTiriinijgiifi  McLeod  and  his  family 
removed  to  a  place  half  way  between  the  fort  and  the 
Indians,  in  order  to  fiicilitate.  their  own  support,  and 
assist  in  procuring  food  by  hunting.  His  situation, 
however,  became  soon  one  of  the  greatest  embarrass* 
ment,  he  and  his  &mily  being  surrounded  by  difficnl* 
ties,  privations,  and  deaths.  Six  of  the  natives  neai 
him  sank  under  the  horrors  of  starvation,  and  Akaitcht 
and  hie  hunters  were  t^^elve  days'  mMreh  distant,     tn 


OA-PTAIN  BAOK'b  land  JWiMRKt: 


tSTf 


Toward  th«  end  of  April,  Oapt.  Back  began  to  make 
arrangements  for  conBtmcting  boats  for  prosecuting  the 
expedition  once  more,  and  while  so  employed,  oii^e 
25th  a  messenger  arrived  with  the  gratifying  intelli- 
gence, that  Oapt.  Ross  had  arrived  safely  in  £ngland, 
confirmation  of  which,  was  afforded  in  extracts  from 
the  Times  and  Meraldy  and  letters  from  the  long  lost 
adventurers  themselves.  Their  feelings  at  these  glaci 
tidings  are  thus  described  : — ^^  In  the  fhllness  of  our 
hearts  we  assembled  together,  and  humbly  offered  up 
our  thanks  to  that  merciM  Providence,  who  in  the 
beautiful  language  of  scripture  hath  said,  ^  Mine  own 
will  I  bring  t^am,  as  I  did  sometime  from  the  deeps 
of  the  sea.'  The  thought  of  so  wonderful  a  preserva- 
tion  overpowered  for  a  time  tiie  common  occurrences 
of  life.  We  had  just  sat  down  to  breakfast ;  but  our 
uppetite  was  gone,  and  the  day  was  passed  in  a  fever- 
isn  state  of  excitement  Seldom,  indeed,  did  my  friend 
Mr.  King  or  I  indulge  in  a  libation,  but  on  this  joyfUl 
occasion  economy  was  forgotton  ;  a  treat  was  given  to 
the  men,  and  for  ourselves  the  social  sympathies  were 
quickened  by  a  genewus  bowl  of  punch.''  Oapt.  Back's 
rormer  interpreter,  Augustus,  hearing  that  he  was  in 
the  country,  set  out  on  toot  frt)m  Hudson's  Bay  to  join 
him,  but  getting  separated  from  his  two  companiopPj 
the  gallant  little  fellow  was  either  exhausted  by  suffer- 
ing and  privations,  or,  canght  in  the  midst  of  an  open 
traverse,  in  one  of  those  terrible  snow  storms  which 
may  be  eaid  to  blow  almost  through  the  firame,  he  had 
sunk  to  lise  no  more,  his  Ueachea  remains  being  di8> 
covered  not  tax  from  the  Biviere  a  Jean.  '^  Such," 
says  Capt  Back,  ^^  was  the  nftiserable  end  of  poor  Au- 
gustus, a  faithful,  disinterested,  kind-hearted  creature, 
who  had  won  the  regard,  not  of  myself  only,  but  X 
may  add,  of  Sir  J.  Franklin  and  Br.  Richardson  also, 
by  qualities  which,  wherever  found,  in  the  lowest  as  in 
tne  nighest  forms  of  social  life,  are  the  ornament  and 
charm  of  humanity." 

On  the  7th  of  June,  all  the  preparations  being  com* 
}^eted,  MoLood  having  been  previously  sent  on  to  huati 


» -%.^ 


ITQf  pjK)eBRM  or  ARcrio  usootsby. 

and  deposit  casks  of  meat  at  varioas  stag^,  Back  tot 
out  with  Mr.  lUng,  accompanied  by  four  voyagers  and 
an  Indian  guide,  l^e  stores  not  required  wore  buried, 
and  the  doora  and  windows  of  the  liouso  blockecl  up. 

At  Artillery  Lake,  Back  picked  up  the  remaiudet 
of  his  party,  with  the  carpenters  who  had  been  em 
ployed  "preparing  boats.  The  lightest  and  best  was 
chosen  and  placed  on  runners  plated  with  iron,  and  in 
this  manner  she  was  drawn  over  the  ice  by  f:wo  men  and 
six  fine  dogs.  The  eastern  shore  of  the  lake  was  fol- 
lowed, OS  it  was  found  less  rocky  and  precipitous  than 
the  opposite  one.  The  march  was  prosecuted  by  night, 
the  air  being  more  fresh  and  pleasant,  and  the  part^ 
took  rest  in  the  day.  The  glare  of  the  ice,  the  difh- 
culty  encountered  in  getting  the  boat  along,  the  ice  be- 
ing  so  bad  that  the  spikes  of  the  runners  cut  through 
instead  of  sliding  over  it,  and  the  thick  snow  whicfi 
tell  in  June,  greauy  increased  the  labor  of  getting  along. 
The  cold,  raw  wind  pierced  through  them  in  spite  of 
cloaks  and  blankets.  After  being  caulked,  the  boat 
was  launched  on  l^e  14th  of  June,  the  lake  being  suf- 
ficiently unobstructed  to  admit  m  her  being  towed 
along  shcnre.  The  weather  now  oecame  exceedinffl^^ 
unpleasant —  hail,  snow,  and  rain,  pelted  them  one  anei 
th^ other  for  some  time  without  respite,  and  then  only 
yielded  to  squalls  that  overturned  the  boat.  With 
alternate  spells  and  haltinga  to  rest,  they  however, 
gradually  advanced  on  the  traverse,  and  were  reallj' 
making  considerable  progress  when  pelting  showers  of 
sleet  and  drift  so  dimmed  and  confttsed  the  sight,  dark- 
ening the  atmosphere,  and  limiting  their  view  to  onl^^ 
a  lew  paces  before  them,  ^s  to  render  it  an  extremely 
perplexing  task  to  keep  their  course.  * 

On  the  23d  of  June,  they  fortunately  fell  in  with  a 
cadhe  made  for  them  by  their  avant-courier^  Mr.  Mc- 
Leod,  in  which  was  a  seasonable  supply  of  deer  and 
musk-ox  flesh,  the  latter,  however,  so  impregnated  witb 
tlie  odor  from  which  it  takes  its  name,  that  the  men  do 
ebired  they  would  rather  starve  three  days  than  swal 
l^w  a  iHOffthftil  of  it.    To  removte  this  unfhvorablo  im 


OAFTAIM   BACKd   LAND  JOU&NKT. 


179 


preseion,  Cr^L  Back  ordered  tlio  dailv  rations  to  l)o 
nerved  from  it  for  his  own  lucss  as  well  as  theiitj,  tak- 
ing occasion  at  the  same  time,  to  impress  on  their  minds 
the  injurious  consequences  of  voluntary  abstinence, 
and  the  necessity  of  accommodating  their  tastes  to 
such  food  as  the  country  miffht  supply.  Soon  after  an- 
other cache  was  met  with,  thus  maxing  eleven  animals 
in  all,  that  had  been  thus  obtained  and  secured  for 
them  bv  the  kind  care  of  Mr.  McLeod. 

On  the  27th,  they  reached  Sandy  Hill  Bay,  where 
they  found  Mr.  McLeod  encamped.  O*^  the  28th,  the 
boat  being  too  frail  to  be  dragged  over  the  portage, 
about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length,  was  earned  bodily 
by  the  crew,  and  launched  safely  in  the  Thlewrce-choh 
or  Fish  River.  After  crossing  the  portage  beyond 
Musk-ox  Ilapid,  about  four  miles  in  length,  and  having; 
all  his  i)arty  together,  Captain  Back  took  a  sur^^ey  ot 
liis  provisions  for  the  three  months  of  operations,  wnich 
lie  found  to  consist  of  two  boxes  of  maccaroni,  a  case 
of  cocoa,  twenty-seven  bags  of  pemmican  of  about  80 
lbs.  each,  and  a  kegjvith  two  gallons  of  rum.  This  he 
considered  an  adequate  supply  if  all  turned  out  sound 
and  good.  The  difficulty,  however,  of  transporting  a 
weight  of  6000  lbs,  over  ice  and  rocks,  by  a  circuitous 
route  of  full  200  miles,  may  be  easily  conceived,  not  to 
mention  the  pain  endured  in  walking  on  some  parts 
where  the  ice  formed  innumerable  spiles  that  pierced 
like  needles,  and  in  other  places  where  it  was  so  black 
and  decayed,  that  it  threatened  at  every  step  to  engulf 
the  adventurous  traveler.  These  and  similar  di&cul 
ties  could  only  be  overcome  by  the  most  steady  perse 
verance,  and  the  most  deteimined  resolution. 

Among  the  group  of  dark  figures  huddled  together 
in  the  Indian  encampment  around  them,  Oapk.  Back 
found  his  old  acquaintance,  the  Indian  beauty  of  whom 
mention  is  made  in  Sir  John  Franklin's  narrative  \m- 
der  the  name  of  Green  Stockings.  Although  sur- 
rounded with  a  family,  with  one  urchin  in  her  cloak 
clinging  to  her  back,  and  several  other  maternal  ac- 
companiments, Oapt.   Back   iivunediately   recoirnized 

H  ' 


jH 


18C 


PHOOBE88  OF  AKOTllU  mBOOYERT, 


her,  and  called  her  by  her  name,  at  which  she  '7,111 1, 
and  said  she  was  an  old  woman  now,  and  bcggi^d  that 
she  might  be  relieved  by  the  *'  medicine  mau  "  for  she 
was  very  much  out  of  health.  However,  notwithstand- 
ing all  this,  she  was  still  the  beauty  of  her  tribe,  and 
with  that  consciousness  which  belongs  to  all  belles,  sav- 
age or  polite,  she  seemed  by  no  means  displeased  whoti 
Back  sketched  her  portrait. 

Mr.  McLeod  was  now  sent  back,  taking  with  him  ton 
persons  and  fourteen  dogs.  His  instructions  were  to 
proceed  to  Fort  Kesolntion  for  the  stores  expected  to  be 
sent  there  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  to  build  a 
house  in  some  good  locality,  lor  a  permanent  fishing 
station,  and  to  be  again  on  the  banks  of  the  Fish  Eivor 
by  the  middle  of  September,  to  afford  Back  and  his 
party  any  assistance  or  relief  they  might  require.        \ 

The  old  Indian  chief  Akaitcho,  hearing  from  the  in- 
terpreter that  Capt.  Back  was  in  his  immediate  neigh- 
borhood, said| "  r  have  known  the  chief  a  long  time, 
and  I  am  afraid  I  shall  never  see  him  again ;  I  will  go 
to  him."  On  his  arrival  be  cautioin^  Back  against  the 
dangers  of  a  river  which  he  distinctly  told  him  tho 
present  race  of  Indians  knew  nothing  of.  He  also 
warned  him  against  t\e  treachery  of  the  Esquimaux, 
which  he  said  was  always  maskea  under  the  guise  of 
friendship,  observing  they  would  attack  him  when  he 
least  expected  it.  "  I  am  afraid,"  continued  the  good 
old  chief,  '^  that  I  shall  never  see  you  again ;  but  should 
you  escape  from  the  great  water,  take  care  you  are  not 
caught  by  the  winter,  and  thrown  into  a  situation  like 
that  in  which  you  were  on  your  return  from  the  Cop- 
permine, for  you  are  alone,  and  the  Indians  cannot 
assist  you." 

The  carpenters,  with  an  Iroquois,  not  being  further 
required,  were  dismissed  to  join  Mr.  McLeod,  and  on 
the  8th  of  July  they  proceeded  down  the  river.  The 
boat  was  now  launched  and  laden  with  her  cargo,  which, 
together  '\Hth  ten  persons,  she  stowed  well  enough  for 
a  smooth  river,  but  not  for  a  lake  or  sea  way.  The 
weight  was  calculated  at  3360  lbs.,  exclusive  of  the 
awning,  poles,  sails,  &c.,  and  the  crew. 


OAPrAIM  HACK*!  LAUD   JOUBKSl. 


181 


Their  projfp*e88  to  tho  Bca  woa  now  ono  continnod  sno- 
«v8sion  of  cutofferons  and  formidable  faljs,  rapide,  and 
cataracts,  which  frequently  made  Back  hold  his  breath, 
expecting  to  see  tho  ooat  oashed  to  shivers  against  some 
protruding  rocks  amidst  the  foam  and  fur^  at  the  foot 
of  a  rapid.  The  only  wonder  is  how  in  their  frail  leaky 
boat  tney  ever  shot  one  of  the  rapids.  Bapid  after 
rapid,  and  fall  after  fiEdl,  were  passed,  each  accompa- 
nied with  more  or  less  danger ;  and  in  one  instance  the 
boat  was  only  saved  by  all  hands  jumping  into  the 
breakers,  and  keeping  her  stem  up  the  stream,  until 
she  was  cleared  from  a  rock  that  had  brought  her  up. 

They  had  hardly  time  to  g^et  into  their  places  again, 
when  they  were  carried  with  considerable  velocity 
past  a  river  which  joined  from  the  westward.  After 
passing  no  less  than  five  rapids  within  the  distance  of 
three  miles,  they  came  to  one  long  and  appalling  one, 
full  of  rocks  and  large  boulders  ;  the  sides  hemmed  in 
by  a  wall  of  ice,  and  the  current  flying  with  the  veloc- 
ity and  force  of  a  torrent.  The  boat  was  lightened  of 
her  cargo,  and  Capt.  Back  placed  himself  on  a  high 
rock,  with  an  anxious  desire  to  see  her  run  tho  rapid. 
He  had  every  hope  which  confidence  in  the  judgment 
and  dexterity  of  his  principal  men  could  inspire,  but  it 
was  impossible  not  to  feel  that  one  crash  would  be  fatal 
to  the  expedition.  Away  they  went  with  the  speed  of 
an  arrow,  and  in  a  moment  the  foam  and  rocks  hid 
them  from  view.  Back  at  last  heard  what  sounded  in 
his  ear  like  a  wild  shriek,  and  he  saw  Dr.  King,  who 
was  a  hundred  yards  before  him,  make  a  sign  with  his 
gun,  and  then  run  forward.  Back  followed  with  an 
agitation  which  may  be  easily  conceived,  when  to  hi& 
inexpressible  joy  he  found  that  the  shriek  was  the  tri 
ompnant  whoop  of  the  crew,  who  had  landed  safely  in 
a  small  bay  below.  For  nearly  one  hundred  miles  of 
the  distance  they  were  impeded  by  these  frightftil  whirl 
pools,  and  strong  and  heavy  rapids. 

On  opening  one  of  their  bags  of  pemmican,  the  in 
genuity  of  the  Indians  at  pilfering  was  discovered,  sue 
cessivo  layers  of  mixed  sand,  stones,  and  green  mea. 


m 


X82 


PBOQKESS  OF  AJIOTIO  mSOOVKBT. 


having  been  artfully  and  cleverly  substituted  tor  the 
dry  meat.  Fearful  that  they  might  be  carrying  heaps 
of  stone  instead  of  provision,  Back  had  to  examine 
carefully  the  remainder,  which  were  all  found  sound 
and  well-tasted.  He  began  to  fear,  from  the  inclinatioE 
of  the  river  at  one  time  toward  the  south,  that  it  would 
be  found  to  discharge  itself  in  Ohesterfield  Inlet,  in 
Hudson's  Bay,  but  subsequently,  to  his  great  joy,  it 
took  a  direct  course  toward  the  north,  and  nis  hopes  of 
reaching  the  Polar  Se^  were  revived.  The  river  now 
led  into  several  large  lakes,  some  studded  with  islands, 
which  were  named  successively  after  Sir  H.  Pelly,  and 
Mr.  Garry,  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  ;  two  others 
were  named  Lake  Macdougall  and  Lake  Frankli?\. 

On  the  28th  of  July,  they  fell  in  with  a  tribe  of  about 
thirty-five  very  friendly  Esquimaux,  who  aided  thenfi 
in  transporting  their  boat  over  the  last  long  and  steet 
portage,  to  wmch  his  men  were  utterly  unequal,  and 
back  justly  remarks,  to  their  kind  assistance  he  is 
mainly  indebted  for  getting  to  the  sea  at  all. 

It  was  late  when  they  got  away,  and  while  threading 
their  course  between  some  sand-banks  with  a  strong 
current,  they  first  caught  sight  of  a  majestic  headland 
in  the  extreme  distance  tc  the  north,  which  had  a 
coastJike  appearance.  This  important  promontory, 
Back  subsequently  named  after  our  gracious  Queen, 
then  Princess  Victoria. 

"  This,  then,"  observes  Back,  "  may  be  considered  as 
the  mouth  of  the  Thlew-ee-choh,  which  after  a  violent 
and  tortuous  course  of  630  geographical  miles,  running 
through  an  iron-ribbed  country,  without  a  single  tree 
on  the  whole  line  of  its  bauKS,  expanding  into  five 
large  lakes,  with  clear  horizon,  most  embarrassing  to 
the  navigator,  and  broken  into  falls,  cascades,  and  rap- 
ids, to  the  number  of  eighty-three  in  the  whole,  pours 
its  water  into  the  Polar  Sea,  in  lat.  67°  11'  N".,  and  long. 
94°  30'  W.,  that  is  to  say,  about  thirty-seven  miles 
more  south  than  the  Coppennine  River,  and  nineteen 
miles  more  south  than  that  of  Back's  River,  (of  Frank 
lin,)  at  the  lower  extrem'ty  of  Bathurst's  Inlet." 


CAFTAIN  back's  LAITD  ioUBNET. 


188 


For  several  days  Back  was  able  to  make  but  sIotv 
progreRR  along  the  eastern  shore,  in  consequence  of  the 
Bolia  body  of  drift-ice.  A  barren,  rocky  elevation  of 
800  feet  high,  was  named  Cape  Beaufort,  after  the 
present  hydrographer  to  the  Admiralty.  A  bluff  point 
on  the  eastern  side  of  the  estuary,  which  he  considered 
to  be  the  northern  extreme,  he  named  Cape  Hay. 
Dean  and  Simpson,  however,  in  1839,  traced  the  shore 
much  beyond  this.  The  difficulties  met  with  here,  be- 
gan to  dispirit  the  men.  For  a  week  or  ten  days  they 
had  a  continuation  of  wet,  chilly,  foggy  weather,  and 
the  orly  vegetation,  fern  and  moss,  was  so  wet  that  it 
would  not  bum  ;  being  thus  without  fuel,  during  this 
time  thev  had  but  one  hot  meal.  Almost  without 
water,  without  any  means  of  warmth,  or  any  kind  of 
warm  or  comforting  food,  sinking  knee-deep,  as  they 
proceeded  on  land,  in  the  soft  slush  and  snow,  no  won- 
der that  some  of  the  best  men,  benumbed  in  their  limbs 
and  dispirited  by  the  dreary  and  unpromising  prospect 
before  tnem,  broke  out  for  a  moment,  in  low  murmur- 
ings,  that*  theirs  was  a  hard  and  painfiil  duty. 

Captain  Back  found  it  utterly  impossible  to  proceed, 
as  he  nad  intended,  to  the  Point  Turnagain  of  Franklin, 
and  after  vainly  essaying  a  land  expedition  by  three  of 
the  best  walkers,  and  these  having  returned,  after  mak- 
ing but  fifteen  miles'  way,  in  consequence  of  the  heavy 
rains  and  the  swampy  nature  of  the  gro^ind,  he  camf 
to  the  resolution  of  returning.  Reflecting,  he  says,  on 
the  long  and  dangerous  stream  they  had  to  ascend 
combining  all  the  bad  features  of  tne  worst  rivers  in 
the  country,  the  hazard  of  the  fall?  and  the  rapids,  and 
the  feiender  hope  which  remained  of  their  attaining 
even  a  single  mile  further,  he  felt  he  had  no  choice. 
Assembling,  therefore,  the  men  around  him,  and  ur 
furling  the  British  flag,  which  was  saluted  with  threo 
cheers,  he  announced  to  them  this  determination.  The 
latitude  of  this  place  was  68°  13'  57"  N.,  and  longitude 
94°  58»  1"  W.  The  extreme  point  seen  to  the  north- 
ward on  the  western  side  of  the  estuary,  in  latitude  68** 
46'  N".,  longitude  96'  20'  W.,  Back  named  Cape  Eich- 


184 


PBOGKE86   OF  ARCTriC  DI8C0VEBY. 


ardsoij.  The  spirits  of  many  of  the  men,  whose  health 
had  suffered  greatly  for  want  of  warm  and  nourishing 
food,  now  brightened,  and  they  set  to  work  with  alac- 
rity to  prepare  for  their  return  journey.  The  boat  be- 
ing dragged  across,  was  brought  to  the  place  of  their 
former  station,  after  which  the  crew  went  back  four 
miles  for  their  baggage.  The  whole  wa*.  safely  con- 
veyed over  before  the  evening,  when  the  water-casks 
were  broken  up  to  make  a  fire  to  warm  a  kettle  of 
cocoa,  the  second  hot  meal  they  had  had  for  nine  days. 

On  the  15th  of  August,  they  managed  to  make  their 
way  about  twenty  miles,  on  their  return  to  the  south- 
ward, through  a  breach  in  the  ice,  till  they  came  to 
open  water.  The  difficulties  of  the  river  were  doubled 
in  the  ascent,  from  having  to  proceed  against  the  stream. 
All  the  obstacles  o*f  rocks,  rapids,  sand-banks,  and  long 
portages  had  to  be  faced.  In  some  days  as  many  as 
sixteen  or  twenty  rapids  were  ascended.  They  found, 
as  they  proceeded,  tliat  many  of  the  deposits  of  pro- 
visions, on  which  they  relied,  had  been  discovered  and 
destroyed  by  wolves.  On  the  16th  of  September,  they 
met  Mr.  McLeod  and  his  party,  who  had  been  several 
days  at  Sand  Hill  Bay,  waiting  for  them.  On  the  24th, 
they  reached  the  Ah-hel-dessy,  where  they  met  with 
some  Indians.  They  were  ultimately  stopped  by  one 
most  formidable  perpendicular  fall,  and  as  it  was  Ibund 
impossible  to  convey  the  boat  further  over  so  rilgged 
and  mountainous  a  country,  most  of  the  declivities  of 
which  were  coated  with  thin  ice,  and  the  whole  hidden 
by  snow,  it  was  here  abandoned,  and  the  party  pro- 
ceeded the  rest  of  the  journey  on  foot,  each  laden  with 
a  pack  of  about  75  lbs.  weight. 

Late  on  the  27th  of  September,  they  arrived  at  their 
old  habitation.  Fort  Reliance,  after  being  absent  nearly 
four  months,  wearied  indeed,  but  "  truly  grateful  for 
the  manifold  mercies  they  had  experienced  in  the 
course  of  their  long  and  perilous  journey."  Arrange- 
ments were  now  made  to  pass  the  winter  as  comforta- 
bly as  theii'  meajis  would  permit,  and  as  there  was  no 
probability  that  there  would  le  sufficient  food  in  tha 


■#. 


L 


I 


CA^U^   sack's  hpip  mS^m*:  ^^ 

bouse  for  the  consumption  of  the  whole  party,  all  ex- 
cept six  were  sent  with  Mr.  McLeod  to  the  fisheries. 
The  Indians  brought  them  provisions  from  time  to  time, 
and  their  friend  Akaitcho,  with  his  followers,  though 
not  very  successful  in  hunting,  t\ra8  not  wanting  in 
his  contributions.  This  old  diieftain  was,  however, 
no  longer  the  same  active  and  important  personage  he 
had  been  in  the  days  when  he  rendered  such  good 
service  to  Sir  John  Franklin.  Old  age  and  infirmities 
were  creeping  on  him  and  rendering  him  peevish  and 
fickle. 

On  the  2l8t  of  March  following,  having  left  direc- 
tions with  Dr.  King  to  proceed,  at  the  proper  season, 
to  the  Company's  fectory  at  Hudson's  Bay,  to  embark 
for  England  in  their  spring  ships.  Captain  Back  set 
out  on  his  return  through  Canada,  calling  at  the  Fishe- 
ries to  bid  farewell  to  his  esteemed  friend,  Mr.  McLeod, 
and  arriving  at  the  Norway  House  on  the  24th,  where 
he  settled  and  arranged  the  accounts  due  for  storos, 
&c.,  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company.  He  proceeded 
thence  to  New  York,  embarked  for  England,  and  ar- 
rived at  Liverpool  on  the  8th  of  September,  after  an 
absence  of  two  years  and  a  half.  Back  was  honored 
with  an  audience  of  his  Majesty,  who  expressed  his  ap- 
probation of  his  efforts  —  first  in  the  cause  of  human- 
ity, and  next  in  that  of  geographical  and  scientific  re- 
search. He  has  since  been  knighted  ;;  and  in  1835,  tJjQ 
Koyal  Geographical  Society  awarded  1  'm  their  fto*d 
medal,  (the  Royal  premium,)  for  his  CiUcoT<5ry  c.  the 
Great  Fish  River,  and  navigating  it  t;>  the  sea  on  the 
arctic  coast. 

Dr.  King,  with  the  remainder  ^f  the  pavh ,  (eight 
men,)  reached  England,  in  the  liud sou's  Bay  Com- 
pany's ship,  in  the  following  month,  October. 

Of  Captain  Back's  travels  it  has  been  justly  observed 
that  it  is  impossible  to  rise  from  the  perusnl  of  them 
without  being  struck  with  astonishment  at  the  extent  of 
sufferings  which  tho  human  frame  can  endure,  and  at  the 
same  time  the  wondrous  display  of  fortitude  whi^h  was 
exhibited  under  circumstances  of  so  appalling  a  imture, 


^m 


mM 


1:-^ 


■H. 


186 


PROGRESS   OF   ARCTIC  DISCOVEBT. 


as  to  invest  the  naiTative  with  the  character  of  a  roman- 
tic fiction,  rather  than  an  nnexaggerated  tale  of  actual 
reality.  He,  however,  suffered  not  despair  nor  despon- 
dencj  to  overcome  him,  but  gallantly  and  undauntedly 
pursued  his  course,  until  he  returned  to  his  native  land 
to  add  to  the  number  of  those  noble  spirits  whose  names 
will  be  carried  to  posterity  as  the  brightest  ornaments 
to  the  country  which  gave  them  birth. 

Captain  Back's  Voyage  of  the  Terror. 

In  the  year  1836,  Captain  Back,  who  had  only  re- 
turned the  previous  autumn,  at  the  recommendation  of 
the  Geographical  Society,  undertook  a.  voyage  in  the 
Terror  up  Jludson's  Strait. 

'  He  was  to  reach  Wager  River,  or  Repulse  Bay,  and 
to  make  an  overland  journey,  to  examine  the  bottom 
of  Prince  Regent's  Inlet,  sending  other  parties  to  the 
north  and  west  to  examine  the  Strait  of  the  Fury  and 
Hecla,  and  to  reach,  if  possible,  Franklin's  Point  Turn- 
again. 

Leaving  Englaiid  on  the  14th  of  June,  he  arrived  on 
the  14th  of  August  at  Salisbury  Island,  and  proceeded 
up  the  Frozen  Strait ;  off  Cape  Comfort  the  ship  got 
frozen  in,  and  on  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice  by  one  of 
those  frequent  convjilsions,  the  vessel  was  drifted  right 
up  the  Frozen  Channel,  grinding  large  heaps  that  op 
posed  her  progress  to  .powder. 

From  December  to  March  she  was  driven  about  by 
the  fiuy  of  the  storms  and  ice,  all  attempts  to  release 
her  being  utterly  powerless.  She  thus  floated  till  the 
10th  of  July,  ana  for  three  days  was  on  her  beam-ends ; 
but  on  the  14th  she  suddenly  righted.  The  crazy  vessel 
with  her  gaping  wounds  was  scarcely  able  to  transport 
the  crew  across  the  stormy  waters  of  the  Atlantic,  but 
the  return  voyage  which  was  rendered  absolutely  neces- 
sary, was  fortunately  accomplished  safely. 

I  shall  now  give  a  concise  summary  of  Captain  Sir 
George  Back's  arctic  services,  so  as  to  present  it  mora 
readily  to  the  reader: 


DEASJt   AND  SIMTSOK's   DISOOVERIES. 


187 


In  1818  he  was  Admiralty  Mate  on  board  the  Trent, 
dnder  Franklin.  In  1819  ne  again  accompanied  him 
Du  his  first  overland  jomuey,  and  was  with  him  in  all 
those  perilous  sufierings  which  are  elsewhere  naiTated. 
He  was  also  as  a  Lieutenant  with  Franklin  on  his  sec- 
md  journey  in  1825.  Having  been  in  the  interval  pro- 
moted to  the  rank  of  Commander,  he  proceeded,  in  1833, 
accompanied  by  Dr.  King  and  a  party,  through  North- 
ern America  to  the  Polar  Sea,  m  search  ot  Captain 
John  Eoss.  He  was  posted  on  the  30th  of  September, 
1835,  and  appointed  in  the  following  year  to  the  com- 
mand of  the  Terror,  for  a  voyage  of  discovery  in  Hud- 
sou's  Bay. 

]\£essbs.  Dease  Aim  Simfson's  Dibcovebies. 

In  1836  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  resolved  upon 
undertaking  the  completion  of  the  survey  of  the  north 
ern  coast  of  their  territories,  forming  the  shores  of 
Arctic  America,  and  small  portions  ot  which  were  left 
undetermined  between  the  discoveries  of  Captains  Back 
and  Franklin. 

They  commissioned  to  this  task  two  of  their  oflScers, 
Mr.  Tnomas  Simpson  and  Mr.  Peter  Warren  Dease,  who 
were  sent  out  wich  a  party  of  twelve  men  from  the  com 
pauy's  chief  fort,  with  proper  aid  and  appliances.  De- 
scending the  Mackenzie  to  the  sea,  they  reached  and 
surveyed  in  tfuly,  1837,  the  remainder  of  the  western 
part  of  the  coast  left  imexamined  by  Franklin  in  1825, 
from  hiR  Heturn  Beef  to  Cape  Barrow,. where  the  Bios 
Bom's  boats  turned  back. 

Proceeding  on  from  Return  Reef  two  new  rivers 
were  discovered, —  the  Garry  and  the  Colville;  the 
latter  more  than  a  thousand  miles  in  length.  Althougli 
it  was  the  height  of  sunjmer,  the  ground,  was  found 
frozen  several  inches  below  the  surface,  the  spray  froze 
on  the  oars  and  rigging  of  their  boats,  and  the  ice  lay 
smooth  and  solid  in  the  bays,  as  in  the  depth  of  winter. 

On  the  4th  of  August,  having  left  tho  boats  and  ]jro 
coeded  op  by  land,  Mr.  Simpson  arrived  at  Elsun  Bay 
18  H* 


188 


PROGRESS  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERT. 


wLicb  point  Lieutenant  Elson  had  reached  in  the  Bios* 
Bom's  barge  in  1826. 

The  party  now  returned  to  winter  at  Fort  Confidence, 
on  Great  feear  Lake,  whence  they  were  instructed  to 
piosecute  their  search  to  the  eastward  next  season,  and 
to  communicate  if  possible  with  Sir  George  Back's 
oxpeditien. 

They  left  their  winter  quarters  on  the  6th  of  June, 
1838,  and  descended  Dease's  Eiver.  They  found  the 
Coppermine  River  much  swollen  by  floods,  and  encum- 
bfcred  with  masses  of  floating  ice.  The  rapids  they  had 
to  pass  were  very  perilous,  as  may  be  inferred  from  the 
following  graphic  description: — 

""We  had  to  pull  for  our  lives  to  keep  out  of  the  suc- 
tion of  the  precipices,  along  whose  base  the  breakers 
raged  and  foamed  with  overwhelming  fury.  Shortly 
before  noon,  we  came  in  sight  of  Escape  Eapid  of 
Franklin ;  and  a  glance  at  the  overhanging  cliff' told  us 
that  there  was  no  alternative  but  to  run  down  with  a 
fiiU  cargo.  In  an  instant,"  continvies  Mr.  Simpson, "  we 
were  in  the  vortex ;  and  before  we  were  aware,  my  boat 
was  borne  toward  an  isdated  rock,  which  the  boiling 
surge  almost  concealed.  To  clear  it  on  the  outside  was 
no  longer  possible ;  our  only  chance  of  safety  was  to 
run  between  it  and  the  lofty  eastern  cliff;  Tlie  word 
was  passed,  and  every  breath  was  hushed.  A  stream 
which  dashed  down  upon  us  over  the  brow  of  the  preci 
pice  more  than  a  hundred  feet  in  height,  mingled  with 
the  spray  that  whirled  upward  from  me  rapid,  forming 
a  terrific  shower-bath.  The  pass  was  about  eight  feet 
wide,  and  the  error  of  a  single  foot  on  either  side  would 
have  been  instant  destruction.  As,  guided  by  Sinclair's 
consummate 'F]^  ill,  the  boat  shot  safely  through  those 
jaws  of  death,  u,n  involuntary  cheer  arose.  Our  next 
impulse  was  io  turn  round  I.  view  the  fate  of  our  coni- 
rades  behind.  They  had  profited  by  the  peril  we  in- 
curred, and  kept  without  the  treacherous  rock  in  time.'' 

On  the  1st  of  July  they  reached  the  sea,  and  en- 
camped at  tt  e  mouth  of  the  river,  where  they  waited 
for  tliG  openii  g  of  the  ice  till  the  17th.    They  doubled 


DEASE   AND  SIMPoON's  DISCOVERIES. 


189 


Cape  Barrow,  one  of  the  nortliern  points  of  Bathurst's 
Inlet,  on  the  29th,  but  were  prevented  crossing  the  inlet 
b^  the  continuity  of  the  ice,  and  obliged  to  make  a 
circuit  of  nearly  160  miles  by  Arctic  Sound. 

Some  very  pure  specimens  of  copper  ore  were  found 
on  one  of  the  Barry  Islands.  Ajfter  doubling  Cape 
Flinders  on  the  9th  of  August,  the  boats  were  arrested 
by  the  ice  in  a  little  bay  to  which  the  name  of  Boat 
Haven  was  given,  situate  about  three  miles  from  Frank- 
lin's farthest.  Here  the  boats  lingered  for  the  best 
part  of  a  month,  in  utter  hopelessness.  Mr.  Simpson 
pushed  on  thorfefore  on  the  20tn,  with  an  eirplorinff  pa^y 
of  seven  men,  provisioned  for  ten  days.  On  the  first 
day  they  passed  Point  Tumagain,  the  limit  of  Frank- 
lin's survey  in  1821.  On  the  23d  they  had  reached  an 
elevated  cape,  with  land  apparently  closing  all  round 
to  the  northward,  so  that  it  was  feared  they  had  only 
been  traversing  the  cop,st  of  a  huge  bay.  But  the 
perseverance  of  the  adventurous  exj^orer  was  fully  re- 
warded. 

"With  bitter  disappointment,"  writes  Mr.  Simpson, 
"  I  ascended  the  height,  from  whence  a  vast  and  splen- 
did prospect  burst  suddenly  upon  me.  The  sea,  as  if 
transformed  by  enchantment,  rolled  its  fierce  waves  at 
my  feet,  and  beyond  the  reach  of  vision  to  the  eastward, 
Islands  of  various  shape  and  size  overspread  its  surface ; 
and  the  northern  land  terminated  to  the  eye  in  a  bold 
and  lofty  cape,  bearing  east  northeast,  thirty  or  forty- 
miles  distant,  while  the  continental  coast  trended  away 
southeast.  I  stood,  in  fact,  on  a  remarkable  headland, 
at  the  eastern  outlet  of  an  ice-obstructed  strait.  On  the 
extensive  land  to  the  northward  I  bestowed  the  name 
of  our  most  gracious  sovereign  Queen  Victoria.  Its 
eastern  visible  extremity  I  called  Cape  Pelly,  in  com- 
pliment to  the  governor  of  Hudson's  Bay  Company." 

Having  reached  the  limits  which  prudence,  dictated 
in  the  face  of  the  long  journey  back  to  the  boats,  many 
of  his  men  too  being  lame,  Mr.  Simpson  retraced  his 
8tep>;,  and  the  party  reached  Boat-haven  on  the  20f.h  of 
Augn3t,  having  traced  nearly  140  miles  of  new  coast 


M":    r     tt'-'J'  :t\ 


IGO 


PROGRESS  OF  AROTIO  W8C0VERY. 


% 


ITio  boats  were  cut  out  of  their  icy  prison,  and  com 
menced  their  re-ascent  of  the  Coppermine  on  the  3d  o\ 
September.  At  its  junction  with  tne  Kendal  Eivcr  thc^^ 
left  their  boats,  and  shouldering  their  packs,  traversed 
the  barren  grounds,  and  arrived  at  their  residence  on 
tiie  lake  by  the  14th  of  September. 

The  Ibllowinff  season  these  persevering  explorers  com- 
menced their  third  voyage.  They  reacned  tlie  Bloody 
Fall  on  the  22d  of  June,  1839,  ana  occupied  themselves 
for  a  week  in  carefully  examining  Richardson's  River, 
which  was  discovered  in  the  previous  .year,  and  dis- 
ejmr^s  itself  in  the  head  oi'  Back's  Inlet.  On  the  3d 
oiJmy  they  reached  Cape  Barrow,  and  from  its  rocky 
heights  were  8ui*prised  to  observe  Coronation  Gulf 
almost  clear  of  ice,  while  on  their  former  visit  it  could 
have  been  crossed  on  foot. 

They  were  at  Cape  Franklin  a  month  earlier  than  * 
Mr.  Simpsoij.  reached  it  on  foo*  tlie  previous  year,  and 
doubled  Cape  Alexander,  the  northernmost  cape  in  this 
quarter,  on  the  28th  of  July,  after  encountering  a  vio- 
lent gale.  They  coasted  the  huge  bay  extending  for 
about  nine  degrees  eastward  from  this  point,  being -fa- 
vored with  clear  weather,  and  protectccl  by  the  various 
islands  they  met  from  the  crushing  state  of  the  ice 
drifted  from  seaward. 

On  the  10th  of  August  they  opened  a  strait  about 
ten  miles  wide  at  each  extremity,  but  narrowing  to  four 
or  live  miles  in  the  center.  This  strait,  which  divides 
the  main-land  from  Boothia,  has  been  called  Simpson's 
Strait. 

On  the  13th  of  August  they  had  passed  Richardson's 
Point  and  doubled  Point  Ogle,  the  furthest  point  of 
Back's  journey  in  1834. 

By  the  16th  they  had  reached  Montreal  Island  in 
Back's  Estuary,  where  they  found  a  deposit  of  pro- 
visions which  Captain  Back  had  left  there  that  day  five 
years.  The  pemmican  was  unlit  for  use,  but  out  of 
several  pounds  of  chocolate  half  decayed  the  men  con- 
trived to  pick  sufficient  to  make  a  kettleful  acceptable 
drink  in  honor  of  tlie  ocp^lon.    There  were  also  a  tin 


DBASE  AND  SIMPSCN'B  DISCOVERIES. 


m 


case  and  a  few  fish-hooks,  of  wliich,  observes  Mr. 
Simpson, "  Mr.  Dcaso  and  I  took  possession,  as  memo- 
rials of  our  having  breakfasted  on  the  very  spot  where 
tlio  tent  of  our  gallant,  though  less  successful  precuraor 
stood  that  very  day  five  years  before. 

By  the  20th  of  August  they  had  reached  as  far  as 
Aberdeen  Island  to  the  eastward,  from  which  they  had 
a  view  of  an  apparently  large  gulf,  corresponding  with 
that  which  had  been  so  correcthr  described  to  Parry  by 
the  intelligent  Es(][uimaux  female  as  Akkolee. 

From  a  mountainous  ridge  about  three  miles  inland 
a  view  of  laiid  in  the  northeast  was  obtained  supposed 
to  be  one  of  the  southern  promontories  of  Boothia. 
High  and  distant  islands  stretcliing  from  E.  to  £.  N.  E. 
(probably  some  in  Committee  Bay)  were  seen,  and  two 
considerable  ones  were  noted  far  out  in  the  ofling. 
Rememberinff  the  length  and  difficulty  of  their  return 
route,  the  explorers  now  retraced  their  steps.  On  their 
return  voyage  they  traced  sixty  miles  of  the  south  coast 
of  Boothia,  where  at  one  time  they  were  not  more  than 
ninety  miles  from  the  site  of  the  magnetic  pole,  as  de- 
teianined  by  Captain  Sir  James  C.  Ross.  On  the  25th 
of  August  they  erected  a  high  cairn  at  their  farthest 
point,  near  Cape  Herschel. 

About  150  miles  of  the  high,  bold  shores  of  Victoria 
Land,  as  far  as  Cape  Parry,  were  also  examined; 
"Wellington,  Cambridge,  and  Byron  Bays  being  sur- 
veyed and  accurately  laid  down.  They  then  stretched 
across  Coronation  Gulf,  and  re-entered  the  Copper- 
mine Biver  on  the  16th  of  September. 

Abandoning  here  one  of  their  boats,  with  the  re- 
mains of  their  useless  stores  and  other  articles  not 
required,  they  ascended  the  river  and  reached  Fort 
Confidence  on  the  24th  of  September,  after  one  of  the 
longest  and  most  successful  boat  voyages  ever  per- 
formed on  the  Polar  Sea,  having  traversed  more  than 
1600  miles  of  sea. 

In  1888,  before  the  intelligence  of  this  last  trip 
had  been  received,  Mr  Simpson  was  presented  by 
the  Royal  Geographf  ?a   Society  of  London  with  th« 


X92 


^  PROOKESS    OF   AKCTIO   DISCOVEilY. 


I 


Fuimder's  Gold  Modal,  for  discovering  and  tracing  in 
1837  and  1838  about  300  miles  of  tlio  arctic  shores ; 
but  the  voyage  which  1  have  just  recorded  has  added 
^rciitly  to  the  laurels  which  he  and  hig  bold  compan< 
ions  have  achieved. 

Db.  John  Bae's  Land  Expedition,  1846-47. 

^  Alth  )UGH  a  little  out  of  its  chronological  order,  I 
'  give  Dr.  Kae's  exploring  trip  before  I  proceed  to  no- 
tice Frai-klin's  last  voyage,  and  the  difl*.  ^nt  relief 
!  expeditions  that  have  been  sent  out  during  the  past 
^  two  years. 

♦     In  1846  the  Hudson's  Company  dispatched  an  ex- 

'•pedition  of  thirteen  persons,  under  the  command  of 

*>■  br.  John  Rae,  for  the  purpose  of  surveying  the  unex- 

•^^plored  portioi   of  the  Rrctic  coast  at  the  northeastern 

angle  ot  the  American  continent  between  Dease  and 

Simpson's  ferthest,  and  the  Strait  of  the  Fury  and 

Hecla. 

The  expedition  left  Fort  Churchill,  in  Hudson's 
'Bav,  on  tlie  6th  of  July,  1846,  and  returned  in  safety 
to  York  Factory  on  the  6th  September  in  the  follow- 
ing year,  utter  having,  by  traveling  over  ice  and  snow 
ill  the  Bpri/ip^,  traced  the  coast  all  the  way  from  the 
'  Lord  Mayor'i  Bay  of  Sir  John  Ross  to  within  eight 
'  or  ten  miles  of  the  Fury  and  Hecla  Strait,  thus  prov- 
"  ing  thfit  eminent  navigator  to  have  been  correct  in 

stating  iloothia  to  be  a  peninsula. 
'■  On  the  15th  of  July  the  boats  first  fell  in  with  the 
ice,  about  ten  miles  north  of  Cape  Fullerton,  and  it 
was  so  heavy  and  closely  packed  that  they  were 
>'  obliged  to  take  shelter  in  a  deep  and  narrow  inlet 
2  that  opportunely  presented  itself,  where  they  were 
-  closed  up  two  days. 

On  the  22d  the  party  reached  the  most  southerly 

*•  opening  of  "Wager  Kiver  or  Bay,  but  were  detained 

the  whole  day  by  the  immense  quantities  of  heavy  ico 

^{driving  in  and  out  with  the  flood  and  ebb  of  the  tide, 

^  which  ran  at  the  rate  of  eight  miles  an  hour,  forcing  up 


m 


DB.  JOnK  RAe's  land  XZFEDrnON. 


nm 


wfie  ice  and  grinding  it  affainet  the  rocks  with  a  noieo 
like  thunder.  On  the  night  of  the  24th  the  boats 
anchored  at  the  head  of  the  Repulse  Bay.  The  follow- 
ing day  they  anchored  in  Gibson's  Cove,  on  the  banks 
of  which  they  met  with  a  small  party  of  Esquimaux  ; 
several  of  the  women  wore  beads  round  their  wrists, 
which  they  had  obtained  from  Captain  Parry's  ship 
when  at  Igloolik  and  Winter  Island.  But  they  had 
neither  heard  nor  seen  anything  of  Sir  John  Franklin. 
.  Learning  from  a  chart  drawn  by  one  of  the  natives, 
that  the  isthmus  of  Melville  pen  in  'la  was  only  about 
forty  miles  across,  and  that  of  th  -  vving  to  a  number 
of  large  lakes,  but  live  miles  ot  Iv,  >\ild  have  to  be 
passed  over.  Dr.  Rae  determine  o  make  his  way 
over  this  neck  in  preference  to  ^^oceoding  by  Fox's 
Channel  through  the  Fuiy  and  Hecla  Strait. 

One  boat  was  therefore  laid  up  with  her  cargo  in 
security,  and  with  the  other  the  party  set  out,  assisted 
by  three  Esquimaux.  After  traversing  several  large 
lakes,  and  crossing  over  six  "  portages,"  on  the  2d  of 
August  they  got  into  the  salt  water,  in  Committee 
Bay,  but  bemg  able  to  make  but  little  progress  to  the 
northwest,  in  consequence  of  heavy  gales  and  closely 
packed  ice,  he  returned  to  his  starting  point,  and  made 
preparations  for  wintering,  it  being  found  impossible 
to  proceed  with  the  survey  at  that  time.  The  other 
boat  was  brought  across  the  isthmus,  and  all  hands 
were  set  to  work  in  making  preparations  for  a  long 
and  cold  v;inter. 

As  no  wood  was  to  be  had,  stones  were  collected  to 
build  a  house,  which  was  finished  by  the  2d  of  Sep- 
tember. Its  dimensions  were  twenty  foot  by  fourteen, 
and  about  eight  feet  high.  •  The  roof  was  formed  of 
oil-cloths  and  morse-skm  coverings,  the  masts  and 
oars  of  the  boats  serving  ^s  rafters,  while  the  door 
was  made  of  parchment  skins  stretched  over  a  wooden 
frame. 

The  deer  had  already  commenced  migrating  south- 
ward, but  whenever  he  had  leisure,  Dr.  Rae  shoul- 
dered his  rifle,  and  had  frequently  good  success,  shoot-* 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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► 

Hiotographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


33  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  873-4503 


194 


FKOOSUSS  OF  ASCTnO  DI800YEST. 


ing  on  oue  day  seven  deer  within  two  miles  of  tbeii 
encampment. 

On  the  16th  of  October,  the  thermometer  fell  to 
zero,  and  the  greater  part  of  the  reindeer  had  passed; 
but  the  party  nad  by  tim  time  shot  130,  and  during 
the  remainder  of  October,  and  in  November,  thirty* 
two  more  were  killed,  so  that  with  20(^  partridges  and 
a  few  salmon,  their  snow-built  larder  was  pretty  well 
stocked. 

Sufficient  fuel  had  been  collected  to  last,  with  econ- 
omy, for  cooking,  until  the  spring ;  and  a  couple  of 
seals  which  had  been  shot  produced  oil  enough  foi 
their  lamps.  By  nets  set  in  uie  lakes  under  the  ice,'  a 
few  salmon  were  also  caught. 

After  passing  a  very  stormy  winter,  with  the  tern- 
]^erature  occasionally  47°  below  freezing  point,  and 
often  an  allowance  of  but  one  meal  a  day,  toward  the  \ 
end  of  February  preparations  for  resummg  their  sur- 
veys in  the  spring  were  made.  Sleds,  similar  to  those 
used  by  the  natives,  were  constructed.  In  the  begin- 
ning of  March  the  reindeer  began  to  migrate  north- 
ward, but  were  very  shy.  One  was  shot  on  the  11th. 
Br.  Rae  set  out  on  the  5th  of  April,  in  company 
with  three  men  and  two  Esquimaux  as  interpreters, 
their  provisions  and  bedding  being  drawn  on  sleds  by 
four  dogs.  Nothing  worthy  of  notice  occurs  in  this 
exploratory  trip,  till  on  the  18th  Kae  came  in  sight  of 
Lord  Mayor's  Bay,  and  the  group  of  islands  with  which 
it  is  studded.  The  isthmus  which  connects  the  land 
to  the  northward  with  Boothia,  he  found  to  be  only  about 
a  mile  broad.  On  their  return  the  party  fortunately  MX 
in  with  four  Esquimaux,  from  whom  they  obtained  a 
quantity  of  seal's  blubber  for  fuel  and  dog's  food,  and 
some  of  the  flesh  and  blood  for  their  own  use,  enough 
to  maintain  them  for  six  ^ays  on  half  allowance. 

AH  the  party  were  more  or  less  affected  with  snow 
blindness,  but  arrived  at  their  winter  quarters  in  Re- 
pulse Bay  on  the  5th  of  May,  fill  safe  and  well,  but  as 
black  as  negroes,  from  the  combined  effects  of  frost- 
bites and  oil  smoke. 


^ 


mt.  JOHN  RAX'S  LAND  EXPEDtnON. 


195 


On  the  evening  of  the  13th  May,  Dr.  lUe  again 
started  with  a  chosen  party  of  four  men,  to  trace  the 
west  shore  of  Melville  jpeninsula.  Each  of  the  men 
carried  about  70  lbs.  weight. 

'  Being  unable  to  obtain  a  drop  of  water  of  nature's 
thawinff,  and  fuel  being  rather  a  scarce  article,  they 
were  ooliged  to  take  small  kettles  of  snow  under  the 
blankets  with  them,  to  thaw  by  the  heat  of  the  body. 

Having  reached  to  about  §9°  42'  N.  lat.,  and  85**^  8' 
long.,  and  their  provisions  being  nearly  exhausted, 
they  were  obliged,  much  to  their  disappointment,  to 
turn  back,  when  only  within  a  few  miles  of  the  Hecla 
and  Fury  Strait.  Early  on  the  morning  of  the  30th 
of  May,  the  party  arrived  at  their  snow  hut  on  Gape^ 
lliomas  Simpson.  The  men  they  had  left  there  were 
well,  but  very  thin,  as  they  had  neither  caught  nor 
shot  any  thing  eatable,  except  two  marmots,  and  they 
were  preparing  to  cook  a  piece  of  parchment  skin  for 
their  supper. 

"  Our  journey,"  says  Dr,  Rae,  "  hitherto  had  been 
the  most  fatiguing  I  had  ever  experienced ;  the  severe 
exercise,  with  a  limited  allowance  of  food,  had  reduced 
the  whole  party  very  much.  However,  we  marched 
merrily  on,  tightening  our  belts — mine  came  in  six 
inches — the  men  vowing  that  when  they  got  on  full 
allowance,  they  would  make  up  for  lost  time." 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th  of  June,  they  arrived  at 
their  encampment  in  Bepulse  Bay,  after  being  absent 
twenty-seven  days.  The  whole  party  then  set  actively 
to  work  procuring  food,  collecting  fuel,  and  preparing 
the  boats  for  sea ;  and  the  ice  in  the  bay  having  broken 
u^  on  the  11th  of  August,  on  the  12th  they  left  their 
winter  quarters,  and  after  encountering  head  winds 
and  stormy  weather,  reached  Churchill  Kiver  on  the 
31st  of  Au^t. 

A  gratuity  of  400?.  was  awarded  to  Mr.  Rae,  by  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  for  the  'uportant  services  ho 
had  thus  rendered  to  vhe  cause    i  science. 


•i»e 


PBOORESS  or  AROnO  DIBOOTESY. 


ft' 


,^ 


Captain  Sib  John  Fbanklin's  Last  ExpBDrribN, 

1846-61. 

TnAT  Sir  John  Franklin,  now  nearly  six  years  al> 
sent,  is  alive,  we  dare  not  affirm :  but  that  nis  ships 
should  be  so  utterly  annihilated  tnat  no  trace  of  them 
CAn  be  discovered,  or  if  they  have  been  so  entirely 
lost,  that  not  a  single  life  should  have  been  saved  to 
relate  the  disaster,  and  that  no  traces  of  the  crew  or 
Tessels  should  have  been  met  with  by  the  Esquimaux, 
6r  the  exploring  parties  who  have  visited  ana  investi- 
gated those  cr.asts,  and  bays,  and  inlets  to  so  consid- 
erable an  extent,  is  a  most  extraordinary  circumstance, 
it  is  the*  general  belief  of  those  officers  who  have 
served  in  the  former  arctic  expeditions,  that  whatever 
accident  may  have  befallen  the  Erebus  and  Terror, 
they  cannot  wholly  have  disappeared  from  those  seas, 
and  that  some  traces  of  their  rate,  if  not  some  living 
remnant  of  their  crews,  must  eventually  reward  the 
search  of  the  diligent  investigator.  It  is  possible  that 
they  may  be  found  in  quarters  the  least  expected. 
There  is  still  reason,  then,  for  hope^  and  for  the  great 
and  honorable  exertions  wliich  that  divine  spao:  in 
the  soul  has  prompted  and  still  keeps  alive. 

"There  is  something,"  says  the  Athenaeum,  "in- 
'^nsely  interesting  in  the  picture  of  those  dreary  seas 
amid  whose  strange  and  unspeakable  solitudes  our  lost 
^  countrymen  ai'e,  or  have  been,  somewhere  imprisoned 
for  so  many  years,  swarming  with  the  human  life  that 
is  risked  to  set  them  free.  Ko  haunt  was  ever  so  ex- 
citing—  so  fiill  of  a  wild  grandeur  and  a  profound 
*patho8  —  as  that  which  haa  just  aroused  tne  arctic 
echoes ;  that  wherein  their  brothers  and  companions 
have  been  beating  for  the  track  by  which  they  may 
rescue  the  lost  mariners  from  the  ic"  ^sp  of  tne  Ge 
nius  of  the  Korth.  Fancy  these  ir  n  their  adaman 
tine  prison,  wherever  it  may  be,-"-ouained  up  by  the 
polar  spirit  whom  they'had  dared,  —  lingering  through 
years  of  cold  and  darkness  on  the  stinted  ration  that 
scarcely  feeds  the  blood,  and  the  feeble  hope  that 


FBANELIN's  last  EXPEBinOK. 


jm 


iquimaux, 


scarcely  snataips  the  heart, — and  then  imagine  the  rush 
of  emotions  to  sreet  the  first  cr^  froiu  that  wild  hunting 
ground  which  should  reach  thfiic  ears  1    Through  many 
summers  has  that  cry  been  flstened  for,  no  doubt. 
Something  like  an  expectation  of  the  rescue  which  it 
should  announce  has  revived  with  each  returning  sea- 
son of  comparative  light,  to  die  of  its  own  baffled  in- 
tensity as  the  long  darl  montlis  once  more  settled  down 
upon  tiieir  dreary  prison-house. — There  is  scarcely  a 
doubt  that  the  track  beine  now  stmcl^  these  long- 
pining  hearts  may  b6  traced  to  their  lair.    But  what  to 
tjio  anxious  questioning  which  has  year  by  year  ^one 
forth  in  search  of  their  fate,  will  be  the  answer  now 
revealed  ?    The  trail  is  found, — but  what  of  the  weary 
feet  that  made  it?    "We  are  not  willing  needlessly  to 
alarm  the  public  sympathies,  which  have  been  so  gene- 
rously stirred  on  oehalf  of  the  missing  men,— but  we 
are  bound  to  warn  our  readers  against  too  sanguine  an 
entertainment  of  the  hope  wliich  the  first  tidings  of  the 
recent  discovery  is  calculated  to  suggest.    It  is  scarcely 
possible  that  the  provisions  which  are  sufficient  for  three 
years,  and   adaptable  for  four,  can  by  any  economy 
which  implies  less  than  starvation  have  been  spread 
over  five,  —  and  scarcely  probable  that  they  can  have 
been  made  to  do  so  by  the  help  of  any  acciaents  which 
the  place  of  confinement  supplied,     ne  cannot  hear  of 
this  sudden  discovery  of  traces  of  the  vanished  crews  as 
living  men,  without  a  wish  which  comes  l^e  a  pang 
that  it  had  been  two  years  ago — or  even  last  year,    fi 
makes  the  heart  sore  to  think  how  close  tq]  ief  may  have 
been  to  their  hidingrplace  in  former  years  —  when  it 
turned  away.    There  is  scarcely  reason  to  doubt  that 
had  the  present  circumstances  of  the  search  occurred 
two  years  ago — last  year  perhaps — the  wanderers 
would  have  been  restored.    Another  year  makes  a 
frightful  difference  in  the  odds  :  —  and  we  do  not  think 
the  public  will  ever  feel  satisfied  with  what  has  been 
done  in  this  matter  if  the  oracle  so  long  questioned,  and 
silent  so  long,  shall  speak  at  last — and  me  answer  shaU 
be.  at  is  too  late'" 


»^:  i*r'iit#T*  "WW 


198 


PBOOBBBS  OF  ASCTIO  DI800TKBT. 


In  the  prosecution  of  tlie  noble  enterprise  oil  wUch 
all  eyes  are  now  turned,  it  is  not  merely  scientific  re- 
search and  geographical  discovery  that  are  at  present 
occupying  the  attention  of  the  commanders  of  vessels 
sent  out ;  the  lives  of  human  beinss  are  at  stake,  and 
above  all,  the  lives  of  men  who  nave  nobly  periled 
every  thing  in  the  cause  of  national — nay,  of  umversal 
progress  icmd  knowledge ; — of  men  who  have  evinced 
on  this  and  other  expeditions  the  most  dauntless  bra* 
verv  that  any  men  can  evince.  Who  can  think  of  the 
probable  ikte  of  these  gallant  adventurers  without  a 
shudder? - 

Alas!  how  truthfully  has  Montgomery  depicted  the 
&tal  imprisonment  of  vessels  in  these  regions  :— 


Th«re  Ket «  xtaaA  in  tluit  mlm  of  froft, 
Not  wrecked,  not  atnuKled,  yet  forerer  lott ; 
Its  keel  embedded  in  tiie  solid  mass ; 
Its  glistening  sails  vppeu  expanded  glass ; 
The  transvviae  topes  with  peaiis  enonnoos  ■tnii|^ 
The  yards  with  icicles  grotesquely  hung. 
Wrapt  in  the  topmast  worouds  there  rests  a  boj. 
His  old  sea-lkring  other's  only  joy ; 
Sprune  from  a  noe  of  rovers,  ocean  bom, 
Kursed  at  the  helm,  he  trod  dry  land  with  soom , 
Through  fourscore  years  from  port  to  port  he  tesol  $ 
Quicknnd,  nor  rock,  nor  foe,  nor  tempest  fear'd ; 
Now  cast  ashoira^  tbot^h  like  a  hulk  he  lie^ 
His  son  at  sea  is  eyer  in  his  eye. 
He  ne'er  diaU  know  in  his  Northumhritm  cot; 
How  brief  that  son's  career,  how  strange  his  lot ; 
Writhed  round  the  mast,  aud  sepulchred  in  air. 
Him  shall  no  worm  doyour,  no  yulture  U»* ; 
Corigeal'd  to  adamant  his  fhisie  shall  last^ 
Though  empires  chtmge,  till  tide  and  time  be  past 
Mom  shall  return,  and  noon,  and  vn,  and  night 
Meet  here  with  interchanging  shade  and  light ; 
But  from  that  barque  no  timber  shall  decay. 
Of  these  cold  forms  no  feature  pass  away ; 
Perennial  ice  around  th'  encrusted  bow, 
Thfl  peopkd-Kieck,  and  full-rigg'd  mast  shidl  gimr 
Till  from  the  sun  himself  the  whole  be  hid. 
Or  spied  beneath  a  crystal  pyramid : 
As  in  pure  amber  with  diyeisent  lines^ 
A  rugged  shell  emboe^  with  sea-weed,  shiae^ 
From  age  to  ago  increased  with  annual  snow. 
This  now  Mout  Blane  among  the  clouds  may  glow. 
Whose  conic  peak  that  earliest  greets  the  dawn. 
And  latest  from  Uie  sun's  tdiut  eye  withdrawn. 


\ 


'S' 


« 


VRAKKUH^B  LASm  JCXTAMTIOn. 


cr 


IM 


ShaU  from  the  Zenitli,  tliroagh  inourobont  i^oon. 
Bum  like  a  laoip  upon  this  naval  tomb. 


Bat  when  th'  arclumger*  trumpet  sounds  on  lii|^ 
The  pile  ahall  burnt  to  atoms  throwh  the  sky. 
And  leave  its  dead,  upstarting  at  the  oJl, 


Nahbd  and  pale,  before  the  Judge  of  aU. 

All  who  read  these  pages  will,  I  am  sure,  fuel  the 
deepest  sympathy  and  admiration  of  the  seal,  persever- 
ance, and  conjugal  affection  displayed  in  the  noble  and 
untiring  efforts  of  Lady  Franklin  to  relieve  or  to  dis- 
cover the  fate  of  her  distingaished  husband  and  the  gal- 
lant party  under  his  command,  despite  the  difficulties, 
disappointments,  and  heart-sickening  ^^  hope  deferred  " 
with  which  these  efforts  have  been  attended.  All  men 
must  feel  a  lively  interest  in  the  fote  cf  these  bold  men, 
and  be  most  desirous  to  contribute  toward  their  resto- 
ration to  their  country  and  their  homes.  The  name  of 
the  present  Lady  Franklin  is  as  ^^familiai*  as  a  house- 
hold word  "  in  every  bosom  in  England  ;  she  is  alike 
the  object  of  our  admiration,  bur  sympathy,  our  hopes, 
and  our  prayers.  Kay,  her  name  and  that  of  her  hus- 
band is  breathed  in  prayer  in  many  lands — and,  oh! 
how  earnest,  how  zealous,  how  courageous,  have  been 
her  efforts  lo  find  and  relieve  her  husband,  for,  like 
Desdemona, 

"  She  loved  him  for  the  dangers  he  had  passed, 
And  he  loved  her  that  she  did  pity  them." 

How  has  she  traversed  from  port  to  port,  bidding  "  God 
speed  their  mission "  to  each  public  and  private  ship 
going  forth  on  the  noble  errand  of  mercy  —  how  freely 
and  promptly  has  she  contributed  to  their  comforts. 
How  has  she  watched  each  arrival  from  the  north, 
scanned  each  stray,  paragraph  of  news,  hurried  to  the 
Admiralty  on  eacn  rumor,  and  kept  up  with  unremit- 
ting labor  a  voluminous  correspondence  "^irith  all  the 
quarters  of  the  globe,  fondly  wishing  that  she  had  the 
wings  of  the  dove,  that  she  might  flee  away,  and  be 
with  him  from  whom  Heaven  has  seen  fit  to  separate 
her  so  long. 

An  American  poet  well  depicts  her  sentiments  in  tlio 
fol Wing  lines :  — 


# 


^Wv* 


PBOORBiS  OF  ABCmO  DI800VXBS. 


LADY  FRANKLIN'S  APPEAL  TO  THE  NORTBi. 

Oh,  wbara^  vaj  long  kut^ne  I  art  thoa, 

*Hid  Aietic  bom  and  wintrj  ikieat 
Deep^  PoUtf  night  it  on  «•  iiow. 

And  Hope,  long  wreckad,  but  modn  a j  CMI 
I  am  like  thee  I  &m  frozen  plains 

In  the  dtefir  sone  and  nmleM  air, 
Uj  dying,  lonely  heart  complain^ 

And  chilla  in  aorrow  and  despair. 

Tell  me,  ye  Northern  winds  t  that  sweop 

Down  from  the  raylee#,  dusky  day — 
Where  ye  have  borne,  and  where  ye  keep^ 

My  wdl-beloTed  within  yotir  sway ; 
Tell  me,  when  next  ye  wiklly  bear 

llie  icy  message  in  your  breath, 
Of  my  beloved  I    Oh  tell  me  where 

Te  keep  him  on  the  shores  of  death. 

Tell  me,  je  Polar  seas  I  that  roll 

From  ice-bound  shore  to  sunny  isle-* 
Tell  me^  when  next  ye  leave  the  Pole^ 

Where  ye  have  chained  my  lord  the  white! 
On  the  bleak  Northern  diff  I  wait 

With  tear-pained  eyes  to  sse  ye  come  1 
Will  ye  not  tell  me^  era  too  late  ? 

Or  will  ye  mock  while  I  am  dumb  t 

Tell  me,  oh  tell  me,  mountain  wav«s ! 

Whence  have  ye  leaped  and  sprung  to-dijt 
]bve  ye  passed  o'er  their  sleeping  graves 

That  ye  runh  wildly  on  your  way  ? 
Will  ye  sweep  on  and  bear  me  too 

Down  to  the  caves  within  the  deep  7 
Oh,  bring  some  token  to  my  view 

That  ye  my  loved  one  safe  will  keep  I 

Canst  thou  not  toll  me,  Polar  Star  1 

Where  in  the  frozen  waste  he  knesllt 
And  on  the  icy  plains  afar 

His  love  to  Ood  and  me  reveals  7  . 
Wilt  thou  not  send  one  brighter  ray 

To  my  lone  heart  and  aching  e^t 
Wilt  thou,  not  tun  m^  night  to  day. 

And  wake  my  qant  ere  I  die  7 

^dl  me,  oh  dntaj  North  I  for  maw 

My  soul  is  like  thine  AvcUe  fdne; 
Beneath  the  darkened  skies  t-bow* 

Or  ride  tho  stormy  sea  alone  I 
Tell  me  of  my  beloved !  fori 

Know  n^  a  ray  ray  lord  withonfc  I 
Oh,  tell  rac,  that  I  may  not  die  ? 

A  sorvower  on  the  sea  of  doubt  I  W^*^  i0*^* 


i'T  ■» 


FRANKLIlllS  LAST  XXPEDrnoH; 


201 


lu  the  earl^  part  of  1849,  Sir  E.  Parry  stated,  thai 
in  ofifering  his  pinions,  he  did  bo  under  a  deep  senst 
of  the  anxious  and  even  painM  resppnsibilitjr,  both  w 
regarded  the  risk  of  life,  as  well  as  the  inferior  consid* 
oration  of  expense  iuTolved  in  further  attempts  to  res 
cne  our  gallant  countrymen,  or  at  least  the  surviving 
portion  of  them,  from  their  perilous  position. 

But  it  was  his  deliberate  conviction,  that  the  time 
had  not  yet  arrived  when  the  attempt  ought  to  be  given 
np  as  hopeless  :  the  farther  efforts  making  might  also 
be  the  means  of  determining  their  fate,  and  whether  it' 
pleased  God  to  give  success  to  those  efforts  or  not,  the 
Lords  of  the  Admiralty,  and  the  country  at  large,  would 
hereafter  be  better  satisfied  to  have  followed  up  the 
noble  attempts  already  made,  so  long  as  the  most  dis- 
tant hope  remains  of  ultimate  success. 

In  the  absence  of  authentic  information  of  the  fate 
of  the  gallant  band  of  adventurers,  it  has  been  well 
observed,  the  terra  inoognita  of  the  northern  coast  of 
Arctic  America,  will  not  only  bo  traced,  but  minutely 
surveyed,  and  the  solution  of  the  problem  of  centuries 
will  engage  the  marked  attention  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons, and  the  legislative  assemblies  of  other  parts  of 
the  world.  The  problem  is  very  safe  in  their  hands,  so 
safe  indeed  that  two  years  will  not  elapse  before  it  is 
solved. 

The  intense  anxiety  and  apprehension  now  so  gener- 
ally entertained  for  the  safety  of  Sir  John  Franklin, 
and  the  crews  of  the  Erebus  and  Terror,  under  his  com- 
mand, who,  if  still  in  existence,  are  now  passing  through 
the  severe  ordeal  of  a  fifth  winter,  in  those  inclement 
regions,  imperatively  call  for  every  available  effort  to 
be  made  for  their  rescue  from  a  position  so  perilous ; 
and  as  long  as  one  possible  avenue  to  that  position  re- 
mains unsearched,  the  country  will  not  feel  satisfied 
that  every  thing  has  been  done,  which  perseverance 
and  experience  can  accomplish,  to  dispel  the  mystery 
which  at  present  surrounds  their  fate. 

Capt.  Sir  James  Ross  having  returned  successful  from 
^iR  antarctic  expedition  in  the  close  f>|  the  preceding 


m. 


203 


PBOOBEM  OF  ASOnO  DI800VXST. 


**•' 


year,  in  the  spring  of  1845,  the  Lords  Commissioners 
of  the  Admiralty,  upon  the  recommindation  of  Sir 
John  Barrow,  determmed  on  sending  out  -another  ex- 
pedition to  the  North  Pole. 

Accordingly  the  command  was  given  to  Sir  John 
Franklin,  wno  re-commissioned  the  Erebus  and  Terror, 
the  two  vessels  whidi  had  just  returned  from  the  South 
Polar  Seas.  The  expedition  sailed  from  Sheemess  on 
the  20th  of  May,  1846.  The  following  are  the  oflBcers 
belonging  to  these  vessels,  and  for  whose  safety  so  deep 
an  int^est  is  now  felt : — 

Erebus, 

Captain — Sir  John  Franklin,  K.  C.  H. 
Commander-^  James  Fitzjames,  (Capt) 
Lieutenants  —  Graham  Gore,  (Commander,)  Henry 

T.  D.  Le  Yesconte,  James  William  Fairholme. 
Mates  —  Chas.  F.  des  Vaux,  (Lieut.,)  Bobert  O'Sar* 

gent,  (Lieut.) 
Second  master — Hennr  F.  Collins.  -  * 

Sursecm  —  Stephen  S.  Stanley.  * 

Assistant-Surgeon  —  Harry  I);  S.  Goodsir,  (acting.) 
Paynjaster  and  Purser  —  Chas.  H.  Osmer. 
Ice-master — James  Beid,  acting. 
58  Petty  Offio^,  Seamen,  &c. 

Full  Complement,  70. 

Terror, 

Captain — Fras<  K.  M.  Crozier. 
^     Lieutenants  —  Edward  Little,  (Commander,)  Geo.  H. 
Hodgson,  John  Living. 
Mates — Frederick  J.  Hornby,  (Lieutenant,)  Bobert 

Thomas,  (Lieuy 
Ice-master — T.  Blanky,  ^acting.) 
Second  Master — G.  A.  Maclean. 
»    Surseon  —  John  S.  Peddie. 

Assistan^urgeon  —  Alexander  McDonald^ 
Clerk  in  Charge  —  Edwin  J.  H.  Helpman. 
57  Petty  Officere,  Seamen,  &c. 

%^ull  Complement,  68. 


H'. 


ra4jnajif*8  last  KXpyunoK. 


Those  offioent  whose  rank  is  within  parentkesis  kiye 
been  pipomoted  auring  their  absence. 

The  following  is  an  outline  of  Capt  Franklin's  ser* 
vices  as  recorded  in  0'Bjme*s  Naval  Biography  : — 

Sir  John  FraaUin,  K^  K.  R.  G.,  K.  aH^D.  O.  L^ 
F.  It  E«  was  bom  in  jL78d,  at  Spilsby,  in  Lincolnshire, 
and  is  brother  of  the  late  Sir  W .  Fvaoklin,  Kt,  Chief 
Justice  of  Madras.    He  entered  t^e  navy  in  October, 
1800,  as  a  boy  on  beard  the  Polyphemos,  64,  Oaptain 
John  Lawfom,  under  whom  he  served  as  midshipman 
in  the  action  off  OopenhaKen,  dd  of  April,  1801.    He 
then  sailed  with  Captain  Flindera,  in  H.  M.  fJlooD  In* 
vesti^tor,  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  to  New  Bc^and^ 
joining  there  the  armed'  store-ship  Pofpoise  f  li*$^as 
wreck^  on  a  coral  reef  near  Cato  Bank  on  the  ITth  of 
August,  1803.    I  shall  not  follow  him  through  all  his 
subsequent  period  of  ^active  naval  service,  in  which  he 
displayed  conspicuous  zeal  and  activity.    But  we  find 
him  taking  part  at  the  battle  of  Tra&Igar,  on-the  21st 
^   ^f  October,  1805,  on  board  the  Bellerophosy  where  he 
''was  signal  midshipman.    He  was  oonnrmea  as  lieu- 
tenant,  on  board  the  Bedford,  74,  11th  of  February, 
1808,  and  he  then  escoited  the  loyal  family  of  Portugal,* 
from  Lisbon  to  South  Amcnca.    H^  was  engaged^  V9. 
very  arduous  services  during  the  expedition  aminst 
Kew  Oiieans,  in  the  close  ^  1814,  and  was  shgfatfy 
wounded  in  boat  service,  and  for  his  brilliant  services- on 
this  occasion,  was  warmly  and  officially  recommended 
for  promotion.    On  the  14th  of  January,  1818,  he  4M^ 
•umed  command  of  the  kired  brig  Trent,  in  wfaidh.rhe 
accompanied  Captain  B.  Bi^han,  of  the  Dorothea,  on 
the  perilous  yoya^e  of  discovai^  to  the  neighborhood 
of  Spitzbergen,  wmch  I  haye  fully  recorded  elsewhere. 
In  April,  1819,  having  paid  off  we  Trent  In 'the  pre 
ceding  jMo^e^ber,  he  was  inyested  with  ihe  condujpt 
of  an  ezpediition  destined  to  proceed  overland  £roM  the^ 
shores  of  2H!i^sasL'^  Bay,  for  the  purpose  more  partictK^ 
larly  of  ai^esta^^ff  the  actu^  position  of  the  mouth 

of  the  Coppermine  ]tiver«  and  the  exact  trending  of  the 

shores  of  the  Polar  Sea,  to  die  castwai^d  of  that  river 
13  I 


.4: 


W^ 


S04 


PBOOBMl  Of   ABOnO  IlfMK>TEBr. 


The  details  of  this  fearM  undertaking,  which  en- 
dured until  the  summer  of  1822,  and  in  tne  course  of 
which,  he  reached  as  far  as  Point  Tnmagain,  in  latitude 
68°  19'  N..  and  longitude  lOO*"  25'  W.,  and  effected  a 
journey  altogether  of  5650  miles,  Gantain  Franklin 
has  ably  set  forth  in  his  *^  Narrative  of  a  Journey  to 
the  Shores  of  the  Polar  Sea,  in  the  year  1819-22^"  and 
which  I  have  abridged  in  preceding  pages.  He  was 
promoted  to  the  rank  of  Commander,  on  the  Ist  of 
January,  1821,  and  reached  his  post  rank  on  the  20th 
of  November,  1822.  On  the  16th  of  February.  1825, 
this  energetic  officer  again  left  England  on  another  ex- 
pedition to  the  Frozen  BegioQs,  having  for  its  object  a 
co-opei'ation  with  Captains  F.  W .  Beechey,  and  w .  E. 
Parry,  in  ascertaining  from  opposite  quarters  the  exr 
istence  of  a  northwest  passa^.  The  results  of  this 
mission  wiU  be  found  in  detail  in  Captain  Franklin's 
^Narrative  of  a  Second  Expedition  to  tiie  Shores  of  the 
Polar  Sea,  in  1825-7." 

!>On  his  return  to  England,  where  he  arrived  on  the 
26^  of  Sept.,  1827,  ftanWin  was  presented  by  the 
Geographical  Society  of  Paris,  with  a  gold  medal  val- 
ued at  1200  francs,  for  having  made  the  most  important 
acquisitions  to  geographical  Knowledge  during  tne  pre- 
ceding year,  and  on  the  29th  of  April,  1829,  he  received 
the  honor  of  knighthood,  besides  being;  awarded  ii;i  JiUy 
following  the  Oxford  degree  of  a  D.  C.  L. 

From  1830  to  1834,  he  was  in  active  service  in  com- 
mand of  H.  M.  S.  Bainbow,  on  the  Mediterranean  sta- 
tion,  and  for  his  exertions  during  that  period  as  con- 
nected with  the  troubles  in  Oreece,Was  presented  with 
the  order  of  the  Kedeemer  of  Greece.  Sir  John  was 
created  a  K.  C.  H.  on  the  25th  of  January,  1836,  and 
was  for  some  time  Governor  #f  Van  Diemen's  Land. 
He  married,  on  the  16th  of  August,  1823,  Eleanor 
Anne,  youneest  daughter  of  W.  Porden,  Esq.,  architect, 
of  Bemersweet,  London,  and  secondly,  on  the  5th  of 
November,  1828,  Jane,  second  daughter  of  John  Gri^ 
fin,  Esq.,  of  Bedford  Plac^.  "^ 

(CSaptain  Croaer  was  in  all  Parry 'is  expeditions,  hav 


VRANKUK'S  UJn  EXTKDITION. 


90i 


big  beeB  midshipman  in  the  Fnry  in  1821,  in  th« 
HeclA  in  1824,  went  ont  M  Lieutenant  in  the  Hecla, 
with  Parry,  on  hie  boat  expedition  to  the  Pole  in  1827, 
▼olunteerea  in  1886  to  go  out  in  aearch  of  the  missing 
whalers  and  their  crews  to  Davis'  Straits,  was  made  a 
Oaptain  in  1841,  and  was  second  in  command  of  the 

and  on  his 


3tio  expedition  under  Sir  Jame^Boss^ 
I,  appomted  to  the  Terror,  as  secRid  i, 


m  command 


antarctic 

return, 

under  Fnfnklin. 

Lieutenant  Gore  served  as  a  mate  in  the  last  fearful 
vojaffe  of  the  Terror,  under  Back,  and  was  also  with 
Ross  in  the  antarctic  expedition.  He  has  attained  his 
commander's  rank  during  his  absence. 

Lieutenant  Fairholme  was  in  the  Niger  expedition. 

Lieutenant  Little  has  also  been  promoted  during  his 
absence,  and  so  have  all  the  mates. 

Oommander  Fitzjames  is  a  brave  and  gallant  officer, 
who  has  seen  much  service  in  the  East,  and  has  attained 
to  his  post  rank  since  his  departure.  • 

The  Terror,  it  may  be  remembered,  is  the  vessel -in 
which  Captain  Sir  G.  Back  made  his  perilous  attempt 
to  reach  Bepulse  Bav,  in  1886. 

The  Erebus  and  Terror  were  not  expected  home  nn^-^ 
1088  succosts  had  earl^  rewarded  their  efforts,  or  some 
casualty  hastened  their  return,  before  the  close  of  1847, 
Qor  were  any  tidines  anticipated  from  them  in  the  in- 
terval ;  but  wh'en  we  autumn  of  1847  arrived,  without 
%ny  .ntelligence  of  the  ships,  the  attention  of  H.  M. 
Gk>vemment  was  directed  to  the  neceftity  of  searching 
for,  and  conveying  relief  to  them,  in  case  of  their  being 
imprisoned  in  the  ice,  or  wrecked,  and  in  want  of  pro- 
visions and  means  of  transport. 

For  this  purpose  a  searching  expedition  in  thre* 
divisions  was  fitted  out  by  the  government,  in  the  early  . 
part  of  1848.  Hie  investigation  was  directed  to  three 
different  quarters  simultaneously,  viz :  Ist,  to  that  by 
which,  in  ca^  <^  success,  the  ships  would  come  out  m 
the  Polar  S^a,  to  the  westward,  or  Behring's  Straits. 
This  consisted  of  a  Uli^le  ship,  the  Plover,  commanded 
by  Oaptain  Moore,  which  left  England  in  the  latter  end 


iOS 


PBOOBESS  OF  AUOTIO  DISOOVBKT. 


iH 


of  Jaaaary,  for  the  purpose  of  entering  Bebring's  Strgit 
It  was  intended  that  she  should  arrive  there  in  the 
month  of  July,  and  having  looked  out  hr  a  wiiiter  har- 
bor, she  might  send  out  her  boats  northward  and  east* 
ward,  in  which  directions  the  discovery  ships,  if  suc- 
cessful, would  be  met  with.  The  Plover,  however,  in 
her  first  season  j|ever  even  approached  the  plaee  of  her 
destination^  owi^  to  her  settmg  off  too  late,  and  to  her 
bad  sailing  properties. 

'  Her  subsequent  proceedings,  and  those  of  her  boats 
along  th^  coast,  will  be  founa  narrated  in  after  pages. 

The  second  division  of  the  expedition  was  one  of 
boats,  to  explore  the  coast  of  the  Arctic  Sea  between 
the  Mackenzie  and  Coppermine  Kivers,  or  irom  the 
135th  to  the  115th  degree  of  W.  longitude,  together 
with  the  south  coast  of  Wollaston  Land,  it  being 'sup^ 
posed,  that  if  Sir  John  Franklin's  party  had  been  com- 
pelled to  leave  the  ships  and  take  to  the  boats,  they 
would  make  ^r  this  coast,  whence  they  could  reach  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company's  posts.  This  party  was  placed 
under  the  command  of  the  faithful  friend  of  Franklin, 
and  the  companion  of  his  former  travels,  Dr.  Sir  John 
Richardson,  who  landed  at  New  York  in  April,  1848, 
and  hastened  to  join  his  men  and  boats,  which  were 
already  in  advance  toward  the  arctic  shore.  He  was, 
however,  unsuccessful  in  his  search. 

The  remaining  and  most  important 'portion  of  this 
searching  expedition  consisted  of  two  stdps  under  the 
command  of  Sir  9ames  Boss,  which  sailed  in  May,  1848, 
for  the  locality  in  which  Fmnklin's  ships  entered  on 
this  course  of  discovery,  viz.,  the  eastern  side  of*  Davis' 
Straits.  These  did  not,  however,  succeed,  owing  to  the 
state  of  the  ice  in  getting  into  Lancaster  Sound  until 
the  season  for  operations  had  nearly  closed.  These  ships 
wintered  in  the  neighborhood  of  I^eopold  Island,  Eegent 
Inlet,  and  missing  the  store^hip  sent  out  with  pro- 
visions and  fUel,  to  enable  them  to  stop  out  another 
year,  were  driven  out  through  the  Strnit  by  the  pack 
of  ice,  and  returned  home  unsudlfessful.  The  subse- 
quent expeditions  consequent  upon  the  failure  of  tha 


T'- 


IBAHSLIN'S  f.48ir  XXPBDITIOir. 


Wfi 


foregoing  will  be  found  folly  detailed  and  narrated  in 
their  proper  order.  *         ', 

Among  the  number  of  volunteers  for  the  service  of 
exploration,  in  the  difierent  searching  expeditions,  were 
the  following: — Mr.  Ohas.  Beid,  lately  commanding 
the  whalinff  sMp  Pacific,  and  brother  to  the  ice-master 
on  board  Sie  fjebos,  a  man  of  great  experience  and 
rosnectability.  fl||k 

The  Kay*  Joseph  Wolff,  who  went  to  Bokhara  la 
search  of  C&j^t  Oonolly  and  Col.  Stoddart 

Mr.  John  McLean,  who  had  passed  twenty-five  years 
as  an  officer  and  partner  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company, 
and  who  has  recently  published  an  interesting  narm- 
tive  of  his  experience  in  the  northwest  r^ons. 

Dr.  Biohflrd  King,  who  accompauied  Capt.  Back  in 
his  land  jovmey  to  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Fish  Biver. 

Lieut.  Sherard  Osbom,  R.  N.,  who  had  recently  gone 
out  in  the  Pioneer,  tender  to  the  Kesolute. 
f  Commander  Forsyth,  R.  N".,  who  volunteered  for  all 
the  e:q>edition8,  and  was  at  last  sent  out  by  Lady  Frank- 
lin in  the  Prince  Albert. 

Dr.  McCormick,  R.  N.,  who  served  under  Captain  Sir 
E.  Parry,  in  the  attempt  to  reach  the  ITorth  Pole,  in  1827, 
who  twice  previously  volunteered  his  services  in  1847. 

Capt.  Sii*  John  Ross,  who  has  gone  out  in  the  Felix, 
fitted  out  b^  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  and  by  pri- 
vate subscriptions ;  and  many  others. 

Up  to  the  presient  time  no  intelligence  of  any  kind 
has  been  received  respecting  the  enpedition,  and  its 
fate  is  now  exciting  the  most  intense  anxiety,  not  only 
on  the  part  of  the  British  government  and  public,  but 
of  the  Tdiole  civilized  world.  The  maratime  powers  of 
Europe  and  the  United  States  are  vying  with  each  other 
as  to  who  diall  be  the  first  to  discover  some  trace  of  the 
Hissing  navigators,  and  if  they  be  still  alive,  to  render 
ihem  assistance.  The  Hudson's  Bay  Company  have, 
with  a  noble  Hberalitv,  placed  all  their  available  re- 
sources of  men,  provisions,  and  the  services  of  their 
chief  and  most  eaaerienced  traders,  at  the  disposal  of 
govemm©!it.    TheRussian  authorities  have  also  given 


if: 


208 


PBOOBESB  or  Aaano  maooTwaY, 


every  facility  for  difiiisiiig  information  and  aififosding 
assistance  in  their  territories. 

In  a  letter  from  Sir  John  Franklin  to  Colonel  Sabine, 
dated  from  the  Whale  Fish  Jslands,  9th  of  July,  1845, 
after  noticing  that,  including  what  they  had  received 
from  the.  transport  which  had  accompamed  them  so  far, 
the  Erebus  and  .Terror  had  on  board  provisions,  fuel, 
clothing  and  sffts  for  three  years  complete  from  that 
date,  i.  e.  to  July,  1848,  he  continues  as  follows: — "I 
hope  my  dear  wite  and  daughter  will  not  be  over-anxious 
if  we  shoidd  not  return  by  the  time  they  have  fixed  upon; 
and  I  must  beg*  of  yoil  to  give  them  the  benefit  of  your 
advice  and  experience  when  that  arrives,  for  you  Imow 
well,  that  even  after  the  second  winter,  without  success 
|,  in  our  object,  we  should  wish  to  try  some  oth^  channel, 

if  the  state  of  our  provisions,  and  the  health  of  th^ 
crews  justify  it. 

Gapt.  Dannett,  of  the  whaler.  Prince  of  Wales,  while 
in  Melville  Bay,  last  saw  the  vessels  of  the  expedition, 
moored  to  an  iceberg,  on  the  26th  of  July,  in  lat.  74° 
48'  N.,  leng.  66°  13'  W.,  waiting  for  a  favorable  open- 
ing through  the  middle  ice  froml3affin's  Bay  to  Lancas- 
ter Sound.  Capt.  Dannett  states  that  during  three  weeks 
after  parting  company  with  the  ships,  he  experienced 
very  fine  weather,  and  thinks  they  would  have  made 
good  progress. 

Lieut.  Griffith,  in  command  of  the  transport  which 
accompanied  them  out  with  provisions  to  Baffin's  Bay, 
reports  that  he  M;  all  hands  well  and  in  high  Bpirits. 
They  were  then  furnished,  he  adds,  with  every  species 
of  provisions  for  three  entire  years,  independently  of 
five  bullocks,  and  stores  of  every  description  for  the 
same  period,  with  abundance  of  fuel. 
' '  The  following  is  Sir  John  Franklin's  <^cial  letter 
sent  home  by  the  transport: — 

;^.  «  WhalerFiah  Islands,  12th  of  July,  1846. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  acquaint  you,  for  the  informa- 
tion of  the  Lords  Commissioners  oPIhe  Admiralty,  that 


\  s 


xWEAXEUH^  LA«r  BZPBEOnOML 


aod 


her  Majesty's  skips  Erebus  and  Terror,  with  the  trans- 
oort,  arrived  at  this  anchorage  on  the  4tk  instant,  hav- 
ing had  a  passage  of  one  month  from  Stromness :  the 
transport  was  immediately  taken  alongside  this  ship^ 
that  she  might  be  the  nK>re  readily  cleared ;  and  we 
have  been  constantly  emplojred  at  thiat  operation  till 
last  evening,  the  delay  having  been  caused  not  so 
much  in  getting  the  stores  tranuerr^iio  eithe?  of  the 
ships,  as  in  makin^^  the  best  stowaeV^of  them  below, 
as  well  as^  the  upper  deck ;  the  ships  are  now  com- 
plete with  supplies  of  every  kind  for  three  ye«rs;  they 
are  therefore  very  deep;  but,  happily,  we  have  no 
reason  to  expect  niuch  sea  as  we  pr<oceed  farther. 

^'  The  magnetic  instruments  were  landed  the  same 
morning ;  so  ^o  were  the  other  instruments  requisite 
for  ascertaining  the  position  of  the  observatory ;  and 
it  is  satisfactory  to  find  that  the  result  of  the  observa- 
tions for  latitude  and  longitude  accord  very  nearly 
with  those  assigned  to  the  same  place  by  Sir  Edward 
Parry;  those  for  the  dip  and  variation  ai'e  equally  sat- 
isfactory, which  were  made  by  Captain  Grozier  with 
the  instruments  belonging  to  the  Terror,  and  by  Com- 
mander Fitzjames  with  those  of  the.  Erebus. 

'^  The  ships  are  now  being  swnng,  for  the  purpose 
of  ascertaining  the  dip  and  deviation  of  the  needle  on 
board,  as  was  done  at  Greenhithe,  which,  I  trust,  will 
be  completed  this  afternoon,  and.  I  hope  to  be  able  to 
sail  in  the  night. 

^^The  governor  and  principal  persons  are  at  this 
time  absent  from  Disco,  so  that  I  have  not  been  able 
to  receive  any  communication  from  head  quarters  as 
to  the  state  of  the  ice  to  the  north ;  I  have,  however, 
learnt  from  a  Danish  carpenter  in  charge  of  the  Es- 
quimaux at  these  islands,  that  though  the  winter  was 
severe,  the  spring  was  not  later  than  usual,  nor  was 
the  ice  later  m  breaking  away  hereabout ;  he  supposes 
also  that  it  is  now  loose  as  far  as  74P  latitude,  and  that 
our  prospect  is  favorable  of  getting  across  the  barrier, 
and  as  far  as  Lancaster  Sound,  without  much  obstruO' 
tion. 


210 


PIBOOBEBI  Of  ABCmO  DISOOTSKT. 


^Tb«  trftneport  will  sail  for  England  this  day.  1 
shall  hMtruot  the  agent,  Lieutenant  Griffiths,  to  pro- 
seed  to  D^tford,  and  report  his  arrival  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Admiralty.  1  have  mnch  satisfaction  in 
beariiig  my  testimony  to  the  careful  and  zealous  man- 
ner in  which  Lieut.  Griffiths  has  performed  the  service 
intnisted  to  him.  and  would  beg  to  recommend  him, 
as  an  officer  wiBappears  to  have  seen  much  service, 
to  the  fiivorablTconsideration  of  their  lordships, 
t  "  It  is  unnecessary  for  me^to  assure  th^  lordships 
of  the  energy  and  zeal  of  Captain  Crozier,  Commander 
Eitzjames,  and  of  the  officers  and  men  with  whom  I 
have  the  happiness  of  being  employed  on  this  service. 
i'  "I  have,  &c., 

^}.'  (Signed)  John  FRAirlLDf,  Captain. 

«^  "The  Right  Hon.  H.  L.  Corry,  M.  P."  -  \ 

*  It  has  often  been  a  matter  of  surprise  that  but  one 
of  the  copper  cylinders  which  Sir  John  Franklin  was 
instmctea  to  throw  overboard  at  stated  intervals,  to 
record  his  progress,  has  ever  come  to  hand,  butti  re- 
cent sight  of  the  solitary  one  which  has  been  received 
proves  to  me  that  they  are  utterly  useless  for  the 
purpose.  A  small  tube,  about  the  size  of  an  ordi- 
nary rocket-case,  is'  hardly  ever  likely  to  be  observed 
among  huge  masses  of  ice,  and  the  waves  of  the  At- 
lantic and  Pacific,  unless  drifted  by  accident  on  shore. 
Or  near  some  boat.  The  Admiralty  have  wisely  or- 
dered them  to  be  rendered  more  conspicuous  by  being 
headed  up  in  some  cask  or  barrel,  instructions  being 
issued  to  Captain  CoUinson,  and  other  officers  of  the 
different  expeditions  to  that  effect. 

According  to  Sir  John  Bichardson,  who  was  on  inti- 
mate terms  with  Sir  John  Franklin,  his  plans  were  to 
shape  his  course  in  the  first  instance  fbr  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Cape  Walker,  and  to  push  to  the  westward  in 
that  parallel,  or,  if  that  could  not  be  accomplished,  to 
make  his  way  southward,  to  the  channel  discovered  on 
the  north  coast  of  the  continent,  and  so  on  to  Behring's 
Straits ;  fisiiliiig  success  in  that  quaiter,  he  meant  to  re- 
trace his  course  to  "Wellington  Sound,  and  attempt  a 


\     ' 


M-  ISAKKLUr's  UAST  EXP£Dmi»r, 


m 


yu&»ge  northward  of  Parrj^'s  Islands,  and  if  foiled  there 
also,  to  deseond  Begent  Inlet,  and  seek  the  passage 

nalcmg  tiie  coast  discovered  by  Messrs.  Dease  and  Simp- 
son, li 

Captttifi  Fitziames,  the  second  in  command  nlider 
Sir  John  Franklin,  was  mnch.indined  to  try  the  pas- 
sage northward  of  Parry^  Islandsgpnd  he  would  no 
doubt  endeavcHT  to  persuade  Sir  Jonii  to  pursue  this 

leourse  if4bey  fiiiled  to  J;he  southwuid. 

In  a  private  letter  of  Captain  Fit^ames  to  Sir  John 

.Barrow,  dated  January,  1845,  he  writes  as  follows  :  — 
"  It  does  not  appear  clear  to  me  what  led  Parry  down 
Prince  Kc^nt  Imet,  after  having  got  as  inr  as  Melville 
Island  before.  The  northwest  passage  is  certainly  to 
be  gone  through  by  Barrow'a  Strait,  but  whether  south 
(Mr  north  of  Parry's  Group,  remains  to  be  proved.  I  am 
for  going  north,  edging  northwest  till  in  longitude  140®, 
if  possible."  -       , 

I  shaU  now  pro«*.eed  to  trace,  in  chronological  order 
and  succession,  the  opinions  and  proceedings  of  the 
chief  arctic  explorers  and  public  authorities,  with  the 

})rivate  sueffestions  offered  and  notice  in  detail  the  re- 
ief  expeditions  resulting  therefix>m.  * 

In  f^bruary,  1847,  the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty  state, 
that  having:  unlimited  confidence  in  the  skill  and  re- 
sources of  Sir  JohirFranklin,  they  "  hav^as  yet  felt  no 
ap|)rehension8  about  his  safety ;  but  on  the  other  hand, 
it  IS  obvious,  that  if  no  accounts'  of  him  should  arrive 
by  the  end  of  this  year,  or,  as  Sir  John  Boss  expects,  at 
an  earlier  period,  active  steps  must  then  be  taken." 

C^>tain  Sir  ^Edward  Parry  fully  concurred  in  these 
^ews,  observing, "  Former  experience  has  clearly  shown 
that  with  the  resources  taken  from  this  country,  two 
winters  may  be  passed  in  the  polar  regions,  not  only  in 
safety,  but  with  comfort ;  and  if  anv  inference  can  be 
drawn  from  the  absence  of  all  intelligence  of  the  ex  se- 
dition up  to  this  time^  I  am  disjposed  to  consider  it  fa- 
ther in  &vor  than  otherwise  pf  the  success  which  >  as 
attended  their  efforts." 
Captain  Sir  G.  Ba(^,  in  a  letter  to  the  Secretary  of 


SI3 


nKXSBESS  OF  ABOne  IHSOOVXBT. 


the  Admiralty,  under  date  27th  of  Jtmustj,  1848,  says 
'^  Z  cannot  bring  myself  to  entertain  more  than  ordi- 
nary anxiety  for  the  safety  and  return  of  8ir  John 
Franklin  and  his  gallant  companions." 

Oaptun  Sir  John  Bosb  records,  in  February,  1847, 
his  opinion  that  the  expeditioD.  was  frozen  xm  beyond 
Melville  Island||AN>m  the  kno^rn  intentions  oi  Sir  John 
Franklin  to  put  Ais  ships  into  the  drift  ice  at  the  west- 
ern end  of  Melville  Island,  q  risk  which  WiMte  deemed 
in  the  highest  degree  imprudent  by  Lieutenant  Parry 
and  the  officers  of  the  expedition  of  1819-20,  with 
ships  of  a  less  draught  of  water,  and  in  every  respect 
better  calculated  to  sustain  the  pressure  of  the  ice,  and 
other  dangers  to  which  they  must  be  exposed ;  and  as 
it  is  now  well  known  that  the  expedition  has  not  suc- 
ceeded in  passing  Behring^s  Strait,  and  if  not  totally 
lost,  must  have  been  carried  by  the  ice  that  is  known 
to  drift  to  the  southward  on  land  seen  at  a  great  dis- 
tance in  that  direction,  and  from  which  the  accumu- 
lation of  ice  behind  them  will,  as  in  Koss's  own  caee, 
forever  prevent  the  return  of  the  ships ;  consequently 
they  must  be  abandoned.  When  we  remember  with 
what  eitreme  difficulty  Koss's  party  traveled  300  miles 
over  much  smoother  ice  after  they  abandoned  their 
vessel,  it  appears  very  doubtftil  whether  Franklin  and 
his  men,  13S  in  number,  could  possibly  travel  600 
miles. 

In  the  contingency  of  the  ships  having  penetrated 
some  considerable  distance  to  the  southwest  of  Cape 
Walker,  and  having  been  hampered  and  crushed  in  the 
narrow  channels  of  the  Archipelago,  which  there  are 
reasons  for  believing  occupies  the  space  between  Vic- 
toria, WoUaston,  and  Banks'  Lands,  it  is  well  re- 
marked by  Sir  John  Richardson,  that  such  accidents 
among  ice  are  seldom  so  sudden  but  that  the  boats  of 
one  or  of  both  ships,  with  provisions,  can  be  saved; 
and  in  such  an  event  the  survivors  would  either  l^turc 
to  Lancaster  Strait,  or  make  for  the  continent,  accord 
ing  to  their  nearness. 

Colonel  Sabine  remarks,  in  a  letter  dated  WoolricJ*, 


^^v 


VAAKXUN^  LIBT  BXFBMTIOV. 


813 


6th  of  May,  1847,—"  It  was  Sir  John  Franklin's  inten- 
tion, if  foiled  at  one  point,  to  try  in  luceession  all  the 
probable  openings  into  a  more  navicable  part  of  the 
Polar  Sea :  the  range  of  coast  is  considemble  in  which 
memorials  of  the  ships'  proerest  would  have  to  be 
sought  for,  extending  from  Melville  Island,  in  the  west, 
to  the  great  Sound  at  the  head  of  B^n's  Bay,  in  the 
east." 

Sir  John  Kichardson,  when  appealed  to  by  the  Admi- 
ralty in  the  spring  of  1847,  as  regarded  the  very  strone 
apprehensions  expressed  at  that  time  for  the  safety  ot 
the  expedition,  considered  they  were  premature,  as  the 
ships  were  specially  equipped  to  pass  two  winters  in 
the  Arctic  Sea,  and  until  the  close  of  that  vear,  he  saw 
no  well-grounded  cause  lor  more  anxiety  tnan  was  nat- 
urally fdt  when  the  expedition  sailed  firom  this  country 
on  an  enterprise  oi  peril,  though  not  greater  than  that 
which  had  repeated^  been  encountered  by  others,  and 
on  one  occasion  by  Sir  John  Boss  for  two  winters  also, 
but  who  returned  in  safety. 

Captain  Sir  James  C.  Koss,  in  March,  1847,  writes* 
^'I  do  not  think  there  is  the  smallest  reason  for  appre- 
hension or  anxiety  for  the  safety  and  success  of  the 
expedition ;  no  one  acquainted  with  the  nature  of  the 
navigation  of  the  Polar  Sea  would  have  expected  thev 
would  have  been  able  to  get  through  to  Behring's  Strait 
without  spending  at  least  two  winters  in  those  regions, 
except  under  unusually  favorable  circumstances,  which 
all  the  accounts  iroxa  the  whalers  concur  in  proving 
they  have  not  experienced,  and  I  am  quite  sure  neither 
Sir  John  Franklin  nor  Captain  Crozier  expected  to  do  so. 

"  Their  last  letters  to  me  from  Whale  Fish  Islands, 
the  day  previous  to  iimr  departure  from  them  inform 
me  that  they  had  taken  on  t)oard  provisi(ms  for  three 
years  on  full  allowance,  which  they  could  extend  to  four 
years  without  any  serious  inconvenience ;  so  that  we 
may  feel  assured  they  cannot  want  from  that  cause  untiL 
after  the  middle  of  July,  1849 ;  it  therefore  does  not 
appear  to  me  at  all  desirable  to  send  after  thein  u^til  the 
spring  of  the  next  year."  (1848,) 


^ 


au 


PBOOBiBM  or  ABono  meeoyEBT. 


In  the  plan  eubmitted  by  Captain  F.  W.  Bcecbey, 
R.  N.,  in  April,  1847,  alter  pi^nusing  ^  that  there  does 
not  at  pr«seiU  aj^ar  to  be  any  reasonable  apprehcn- 
•ion  for  the  ■a£Btj  of  the  expedition,"  he  su^sted  that 
it  would  perhi^  be  prad^t  that  a  reliet  expedition 
•hoold  be  sent  out  that  season  to  Oape  Walker,  wliere 
information  of  an  important  nature  would  most  likely 
be  found.  From  this  vicinity  one  vessel  could  proceed 
to  examine  the  various  points  and  headlands  |n  Kegent 
Inlet,  and  also  those  to  the  northward,  while  the  other 
watched  the  passage,  so  that  Franklin  and  his  party 
might  not  pass  unseen,  should  he  be  on  his  return.  At 
the  end  of  the  season  tile  ships  could  winter  at  Port 
Bowen,  or  any  other  port  in  the  vicinity  of  Leopold 
XshuuL  ■  -^->ii^^''■^  I 

''  In  the  sprinff  of  1848,"  he  adds,  **  a  party  should  be' 
directed  to  explore  the  coast,  down  to  Meda  and  Fury 
Strait,  and  to  endeavor  to  communicate  with  the  party 
dispatched  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  in  that  direc- 
tion ;  and  in  connection  with  this  part  of  the  arrange- 
ment, it  would  render  the  plan  complete  if  a  boat  could 
be  sent  down  Back's  Biver  to  range  ih»  coast  to  the 
eastward  of  its  mouth,  to  meet  the  above  mentioned 
party ;  and  thus,  while  it  would  complete  the  geography 
of  that  part  of  the  American  coastj  it  would  at  the  same 
time  complete  the  line  of  inf^mation  as  to  the  extensive 
measures  of  relief  which  their  lordships  have  set  on 
foot,  and  the  precise  spot  where  assistan^ce  and  depots 
<^  provisions  are  to  be  found.  l%is  part  of  the  plan 
has  si^gested  itself  to  me  from  a  conversation  I  had 
with  Sir  John  Franklin  as  to  his  first  efibrt  being  made 
to  the  westward  and  southwestward  of  Cape  Walker. 
l^  is  possible  that,  after  passing  the  Cape,  he  may  have 
oeen  successM  in  getting  down  upon  Victoria  Land, 
and  have  passed  his  first  winter  (1845)  thereabot;it,  and 
chat  he  may  have  spent  his  second  winter  at  a  still  more 
.advanced  station,  and  even  endured  a  third,  without 
either  a  prospect  o£  success,  or  of  an  extrication  of  his 
vessels  within  a  given  period  of  time.  % 

^'  If,  in  this  condition,  which  I  trust  may  not  be  the 


■41s, 


."Df*     CA'r'aoirs  and  Buoonnoiis. 


»15 


!,  Sir  John  IVMiklin  should  reBolre  upon  taking  to 
tuB  boats,  he  woidd  prefeinrtitemptiaff  a  boat  navigation 
throngh  ^r  James  Koss's  Strait,  and  up  Begent  Inlet, 
to  a  long  land  joiarnej  across  the  continent,  to  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Settlementi,  to  which  the  greater  part  of  his 
crew  would  be  wholly  unequal.'' 

Sir  John  Eichardson  remarks  upon  the  above  sugges- 
tions, on  the  5th  of  H&y?  1847, — **  Witii  respect  to  a 
party  to  be  sent  down  iUack's  River  to  the  bottom  of 
Begent  Inlet,  its  size  and  outfit  would  require  to  be 
equal  with  that  of  the  one  now  preparing  to  descend 
the  Mackenzie  Kiver,  and  it  could  scarcely  with  the 
utmost  exertions  be  or^anized^o  as  to  start  this  sum- 
m^.  13ie  present  scarcity  of  provisions  in  the  Hudson's 
Bay  eouDtry  predudes  the  hope  of  assistance  from  the 
Company's  southern  posts,  and  it  is  now  too  late  to 
provide  the  means  of  transport  through  the  interior  of 
supplies  from  this  country,  which  require  to  be  embarked 
on  boai'd  the  Hudson's  Bay  ships  by  the  2d  of  June  at 
the  latest. 

^^  Moreover  there  is  no  Company's  post  on  the  line  oi 
Back's  Eiver  nearer  than  the  junction  of  Slave  Biver 
with  Great  Slave  Lake,  and  I  ao  not  think  that  under 
any  droumstandes  Sir  John  Franklin  would  attempt 
that  route. 

"  In  the  summer  of  1849,  if  the  resources  of  the  party 
I  am  to  ecmduet  remain  unimpaired,  as  I  have  every 
reason  to  believe  they  will,  much  of  what  Capt  Beechey 
sn^este  in  regpd  to  ezploiiKg  Yictoria  l^d  may  l4 
dene  by  it,  and  indeed  Icmns  part  of  the  original  scheme. 
The  extent  of  the  examination  of  any  part  of  the  coast 
in  1848  depends,  as  I  formerly  stated,  very  much- on 
the  seasons  of  this  autumn  and  next  spring,  which  influ- 
ence the  advance  of  the  boats  throiu^h  a  I^ig  course  of 
river  navigation.  As  Governor  Simpson  will  most 
likely  succeed  in  procuring  an  Esquim^x  to  accom- 
pany m^  party,  I  nope  by  his  means  to  obtain  such 
information  from  parties  of  that  nati<Hi  as  may  greatly 
facilitate  our  finding  the  ships,  should  they  be  detained 
inthatquartw  -    ,  ..^.;,         , 


il»16 


PR«iOKI88  OF  ABCTIO   DISUOVEBT. 


^^Were  Sir  John  Franklm  thrown  upon  the  north 
.^coaet  of  the  continent  with^hit  boata,  and  all  his  crew, 
I  do  not  think  he  woold  attempt  the  ascent  of  any  river, 
except  the  Mackenzie.  It  is  navigable  for  boats  of  laree 
draught,  witibout  a  portage,  fbr  1300  niHes  from  the 
sea,  or  within  forty  miles  of  Fort  Ghipewyan,  one  of 
ihe  Company's  principal  depots,  and  there  are  iive 
other  posts  in  that  distance.  Though  these  posts  could 
not  furnish  provisions  to  such  a  party,  they  could,  by 
providii^  them  with  nets,  and  distributing  the  men  to 
%  various  £hing  stations,  do  much  toward  procuring  food 
for  them. 

.  "I  concur  generally  in  what  Captain  Beechey  has 
said  with  regard  to  Behring's  Straits,  a  looalitjy^ith 
which  he  is  so  intimately  acquainted,  but  beg  le^e  to 
add  one  remark,  viz :  that  in  high  northern  latitudes 
the  ordinary  allowance  of  animal  fopd  is  insufficient  in 
the  winter  season  to  maintain  a  laboring  man  in  health ; 
and  as  Sir  John  FranMin  would  deem  it  prudent  when 
detained  a  second  winter  to  shorten  the  allowance, 
symptoms  of  scurvy  may  show  themselves  among  the 
'  men,  as  was  the  case  when  Sir  Edward  Fairy  wintered 
two  years  in  Fox's  Channel. 

.  ^  A  vessel,  therefore,  meeting  the  Erebus  and  Terror 
tliis  season  in  Behring's  Straits,  might  render  great 
service."  * 

The  late  Sir  John  Barrow,  Bart.,  in  a  memorandum 
dated  July,  1847,  says  : — 

'^  The  anxiety  that  prevails  regarding  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin, and  the  brave  fellows  who  compose  the  crews  of 
tiie  two  ships,  is  very  natural,  but  somewhat  premature ; 
it  arises  chiefly  from  nothing  having  been  received  from 
^^  them  since  fixed  in  the  ice  of  Baffin's  Bay,  where  the 
'  last  whaling  ship  of  the  season  g£  1845  left  them,  oppo* 
site  to  the  opemng  into  Lancaster  Sound.  Hitiierto  no 
difficulty  has  been  found  to  the  entrance  into  that 
Sound.  If  disappointed,  rather  than  return  to  the  south' 
ward,  with  &e  view  of  wintering  at  or  about  Disco,  I 


'  Pari  Paper,  No.  S64,  Sesfuon  184& 


rftfiA-fci..;^-' 


oninoNS  Aim  stroosmexMS. 


il7 


should  be  isolined  to  think  that  tbey  would  endeavor  to 
enter  Smith's  Sound,  so  highly  spoken  of  by  Balfin,  and 
which  jnst  bow  that  gallant  ana  adrenturons  Rossian, 
Admiru  Oount  Wrangel,  has  pointed  out  in  a  paper 
addressed  to  the  Geograp^cal  Society  as  the  star^mir 
place  for  an  attempt  to  reach  the  Korth  Pole ;  it  would 
appear  to  be  an  inlet  that  mns  up  high  to  the  northward, 
as  an  officer  in  one  of  Parry's  snips  states  that  he  saw 
in  the  line  of  direction  along  that  inlet,  tke  snn  at  mid- 
night skimming  the  horison. 

'•^  From  Lancaster  Sound  Franklin's  instructions  di- 
rected him  to  proceed  thronsh  Barrow's  Strait,  as  fiir  as 
the  islands  on  its  southern  side  llktended,  which  is  short 
of  J^lrille  Island,  which  was  to  be  avoided,  not  only 
on  account  of  its  daneerou»  coast,  but  also  as  being  out 
of  the  direction  of  the  course  to  the  intended  object. 
Having,  therefore,  reached  the  last  known  land  on  the 
southern  side  of  Barrow's  Strait,  they  were  to  shape 
a  direct  course  to  Behrine's  Strait,  without  anv  devia- 
tion, except  what  obstruction  might  be  met  witb  from 
ice,  or  fnmi  islands,  in  the  midst  of  the  Polar  Sea,  of . 
which  no  knowledge  had  at  that  time  been  procured  ; 
but  if  any  such  existed,  it  would  of  course  be  left  to 
their  judgment,  on  the  spot,  how  to  get  rid  of  such  ob- 
structions, by  taking  a  northerly  or  a  soi^therly  course. 

*'  The  only  chance  of  bringing  them  upon  this  (the 
American)  coast  is  the  possioility  of  some  obstruction 
having  tempted  them  to  explore  an  immense  inlet  <m 
the  northern  shore  of  Barrow's  Strait,  (short  of  Mel- 
ville Island,)  called  Wellington  Channel,  which  Parry 
felt  an  inclmation  to  explore,  and  more  than  one  of 
the  present  party  betrayed  to  me  a  similar  inclination, 
which  I  discouraged,  no  one  venturing  to  comecture 
even  to  what  extent  it  might  go,  or  into  what  dimculties 
it  might  lead. 

*^  under  all  these  circumstances,  it  would  be  an  act 
of  folly  to  pronounce  any  opinion  of  the  state,  condi- 
tion, or  position  of  those  two  ships ;  titey  are  well  suited 


BI8 


PBOORBM  or  ABono  dhoovsrt. 


for  their  purpose,  and  the  onlj  doubt  I  hATe  is  that  of 
their  being  hamj^red  by  the  Bcrewt  among  the  ice." 

Sir  Jamee  0.  Rom,  in  his  outline  of  a  pian  for  afford- 
ing relief;  submitted  to  the  Admimltv  in  December, 
1847,  suggested  that  two  ships  should  be  sent  out  to 
examine  Wellington  Channel,  aUuded  to  in  the  forego- 
ing memorandum  of  Sir  John  Barrow,  and  the  coas 
between  Capes  Clarence  and  Walker.  A  eonvenien 
winter  harbor  might  be  found  for  one  of  the  ships  near 
Gai-nier  Bay  or  Cape  BenneU.  From  this  position  tho 
coast  line  could  be  explored  as  fiir  as  it  extended  to  tho 
^westward,  by  detached  parties,  early  in  the  spring,  as 
well  as  the  western  «oast  of  Boothia,  a  considerable 
distance  to  the  southward ;  and  at  a  more  ad^^ced 
period  of  tJie  season  the  whole  distance  to  Cape  ifllQlai 
mi^ht  be  completed.  i 

r     The  other  ship  should  then  proceed  al<me  to  the 
J^westward,  endeavoring  to  reach  Winter  Harbor,  in 
Helville  island,  or  some  convenient  port  in  Banks' 
Land,  in  which  to  pass  the  winter. 
'     From  these  points  parties  might  be  sent  oat  early  iu 
the  spring. 

The  first  party  should  be  directed  to  trace  the  west- 
ern coast  of  Banks'  Land,  and  proceed  direct  to  Cajpe 
Bathurst  or  Cape  Parry,  on  each  of  which  Sir  John 
Bichardson  proposes  to  leave  depots  of  provisions  for 
its  use,  and  then  to  reach  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's 
settlement  at  Fort  Good  Hope,  on  the  Mackenzie, 
whenee  they  mi^t  travel  by  the  usual  route  of  the 
traders  to  me  pnncipal  settlement,  and  thence  to  Eng- 
land. 

?  The  second  party  should  explore  the  eastern  shore  of 
Banks'  Land,  and  make  fbr  Cape  Kmsenstem,  where, 
or  at  Cape  Heame,  liiey  will  find  a  cache  of  provision 
left  by  Sir  John  Bichardson,  with  whom  this  party 
may  communicate,  and  whom  it  may  assist  iri  comple- 
ting the  examination  of  Wollaston  and  Yictoria  Lands, 
or  return  to  England  by  the  route  he  shall  deem  most 
advisable. 

Sir  James  Boss  was  intrusted  with  the  carrying  out 


opimoNfl  AND  suoonmoici. 


119 


of  thii  search,  in  the  Enterprise  and  Tnyestiffator,  an^ 
an  account  of  the  voyage  and  proceeding  ofthese  ves- 
eels  will  be  found  recoraed  in  its  chronological  order. 

The  following  letter  frona  Dr.  Bichurd  King  to  the 
Lords  of  the  Admiralty  contains  some  nsefu]  sugges- 
tions, although  it  it  mixed  «p  with  a  good  deal  of^^Ko* 
tistical  remark: — 

*<  17,  SaviUe  JSoWy  Fehruary,  1848. 

"*The  old  route  of  Parry,  through  Lancaster  Sound 
and  Barrow's  Strait,  as  far  as  to  the  last  land  on  its 
southern  shore,  and  thence  in  a  direct  line  to  Behrinff's 
Straits,  is  the  route  ordered  to  he  pursued  hy  Frank- 
lin.'* 

^^e  gallant  officer  has  thus  been  dispatched  to  push 
his  adventurous  way  between  Melville  Island  and 
Banks'  Land,  which  Sir  £.  Parry  attempted  for  two 
years  unauocessfully.  After  much  toil  and  hardship, 
add  the  best  consideration  that  great  man  could  give 
to  the  subject,  he  recorded,  at  the  moment  of  retreat, 
in  indelible  characters,  these  impressive  thoughts: 
^We  have  been  lying  near  our  present  station,  with 
an  easterly  wind  blowing  fresh,  for  thirty-six  hours 
together,  and  although  this  was.  considerably  off  the 
land,  the  ice  had  not  during  the  whole  of  that  time 
moved  a  single  yard  firom  the  shore,  affording  a  proof 
that  there  was  no  space  in  which  thrice  was  at  liberty 
to  move  to  the  westward.  The  navigation  of  this  part 
of  the  Polar  Sea  is  only  to  be  performed  by  watching 
the  occasional  opening  between  the  ice  and  the  shore, 
ind  therefore,  a  continuity  ofland  is  essential  for  this 
purpose ;  such  a  continmty  of  land,  which  was  here 
about  to  fail,  as  must  necessarily  be  furnished  by  the 
northern  coast  of  America,  in  whatsoever  latitude  it 
may  be  found.'  Assuming,  therefore.  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin has  been  arrested  between  Melville  Island  and 
Banks'  Land,  where  Sir  £.  Parry  was  arrested  by  dif- 
ficulties which  he  considered  insurmountable,  and  in 
has  followed  the  advice  of  that  gallant  officer,  and 

i^ni«i  •  B«iiow*s  Arctic  Voyogea,  p.  11. 

'         V  '     14 


SiSO 


PBOOSE»»   OF  ABCnO  DISCOVERY. 


* 


made  for  the  continuity  of  America,  he  will  have 
turned  the  prows  of  his  vessel  south  and  west,  accord* 
ing  as  BanKs'  Land  tends  for  Victoria  or  Wollaston 
Lands.  It  is  here,  therefore,  that  we  may  expect  to 
find  the  expedition  wrecked,  whence  they  will  make 
in  their  boats  for  the  westem  land  of  North  Somei-set, 
if  that  land  should  not  be  too  far  distant. 

"In  order  to  save  the  party  from  the  ordeal  of  a 
fourth  winter,  when  starvation  must  be  their  lot,  I 

Eropose  to  undei'take  the  boldest  journey  that  has  ever 
een  attempted  in  the  northern  regions  of  America, 
one  which  was  justifiable  only  from  the  circumstances. 
I  propose  to  attempt  to  reach  the  western  land  of  North 
Somerset  or  the  eastern  portion  of  Victoria  Laj|d,  as 
may  be  deemed  advisable,  by  the  close  of  wk  ap- 
proaching summer ;  to  accomplish,  in  fact,  in  one  sum- 
mer that  which  has  not  been  done  under  two.         ' 

"I  rest  my  hope  of  success  in  the  performance, of 
this  Herculean  task  upon  the  fact,  that  I  possess  an  in- 
timate knowledge  of  the  country  and  the  people  through 
which  I  shall  have  to  pass,  the  health  to  stand  the 
rigor  of  the  climate,  and  the  strength  to  undergo  the 
fatigue  of  mind  and  body  to  which  I  must  be  snbjected. 
A  glance  at  the  map  of  North  America,  directed  to 
Behring's  Strait  in  the  Pacific,  Barrow's  Strait  in  the 
Atlantic,  and  the  land  of  North  Somerset  between 
them,  will  make  it  apparent  that,  to  render  assistance 
to  a  party  situated  on  that  coast,  there  are  two  ways  by 
sea  and  one  by  land.  Of  the  two  sea-ways,  the  route 
by  the  Pacific  is  altogether  out  of  the  question ;  it  is  an 
idea  of  by-gone  days  ;  while  that  by  the  Atlantic  is  so 
doubtful  01  success,  that  it  is  merely  necessary,  to  put 
this  assistance  aside  as  far  jfrom  certain,  to  mention  that 
Sir  John  Ross  tbund  Barrow's  Strait  closed  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1832.  To  a  land  journey,  then,  alone  we  can 
look  for  success  ;  for  the  failure  of  a  land  journey 
would  be  the  exception  to  the  rule,  while  the  sea  expe- 
dition would  be  the  rule  itself.  To  the  western  land  of 
North  Sbmetset,  where  Sir  John  Franklin  is  likely  to 
be  found,  the  Groat  Fish  Biver  is  the  direct  and  only 


\* 


i- 


m 


OPINIONS  AND  SUOGBBTIONa. 


aai 


less  an  in- 


route;  and  although  the  aporoach  to  it  is  throu^  a 
country  too  poor  and  too  difficult  of  access  to  admit  of 
the  transport  of  provisions,  it  may  be  made  the  medi- 
um of  communication  between  the  lost  expedition  and 
the  civilized  world,  and  guides  be  thus  placed  at  their 
disposal  to  convey  them  to  the  hunting  grounds  of  tiie 
Indians.  Without  such  guides  it  is  impossible  that 
they  can  reach  these  hunting  grounds.  It  was  by  the 
Great  Fish  Eiver  that  I  reached  the  Polar  Sea  while 
acting  as  second. officer,  in  search  of  Sir  John  Boss. 
I  feel  it  my  duty,  therefore,  as  one  of  two  officers  so 
peculiarly  circumstanced,  at  the  present  moment  to 
place  my  views  on  record,  as  an  earnest  of  my  sincer- 
ity. .  Even  if  it  should  be  determined  to  try  and  force 
proifeion  vessels  through  Barrow's  Strait,  and  scour 
the  vicinity  in  boats  for  the  lost  expedition,  and  should 
ft  succeed,  it  will  be  satisfactory  to  know  that  such  a 
mission  as  I  have  proposed  should  be  adopted  ;  while, 
if  these  attempts  should  fail,  and  the  service  under  con 
sideration  be  put  aside,  it  will  be  a  source  of  reeret 
that  not  only  the  nation  at  large  will  feel,  but  the  whole 
civilized  world.  When  this  regret  is  felt,  and  every 
soul  has  perished,  such  a  mission  as  I  have  proposed 
will  be  urged  again  and  again  for  adoption  ;  for  it  is 
impossible  that  the  country  will  rest  satisfied  until  a 
search  bo  made  for  the  remains  of  the  lost  expedition. 
^^  The  fact  that  all  lands  which  have  ^  western  aspect 
are  generally  ice-free,  which  I  dwelt  largely  upon  ^en 
Sir  John  Franklin  sailed,  must  haf  e  had  weight  with 
the  gallant  officer  ;  he  will  therefore,  on  finding  him- 
self m  a  serious  difficulty,  while  pushing  along  the  east- 
ern side  of  Yictoria  Land,«it  once  fall  upon  the  western 
land  of  ITorth  Somerset,  as  a  refuge  ground,  if  he  have 
the  opportunity.  The  effi^rt  by  Behrinff's  Strait  and 
Banks'  Land  is  praiseworthy  in  attempt,  out  forlorn  in 
hope.  In  the  &rmer  effort,  it  is  assumed  that  Sir  John 
Franklin  has  made  the  passage,  and  that  his  arrest  is 
between  the  Mackenzie  Biver  and  Icy  Cape  ;  in  the 
latter,  that  Sir  James  Boss  will  reach  Banks'^Land,  and 
trace  its  continuity  to  Yictojda  a;^  Wollftstou  Land, 


PSOOBESS  OF  ABOnO  DISOOYEBT. 


^w 


\ 


and  thus  make  the  *pa8saffe.'  First,  We  have  no  rea« 
son  to  believe  that  Sir  John  Franklin  and  Sir  James 
Ross  will  be  more  fortunate  than  their  predecessors, 
and  we  cannot  trust  to  their  success.  Secondly,  We 
are  unable  to  assume  that  Sir  James  Boss  will  reach 
Bank's  Land  ;  Sir  E.  Parry  was  unable  to  reach  it,  and 
only  viewed  it  from  a  distance ;  much  less  are  we  able 
to  assume  that  the  eallant  officer  will  find  a  high  road 
to  Victoria  Land,  TOich  is  altogether  a  terra  incognita. 

"Mr.  T.  Simpson,  who  surveyed  the  arctic  coast 
comprised  between  the  Coppermine  and  Castor  and 
Pollux  Bivers,  has  set  that  question  at  rest,  and  is  the 
only  authority  Tq)on  the  subfect.  'A  further  explora- 
tion,' remarks  "Mi.  Simpson,  from  the  most  eastem^imit 
of  his  journey,  *  w;ould  necessarily  demand  the  whole 
time  and  energies  of  another  expedition,  having  sodne 
point  of  retreat  much  nearer  to  tne  scene  of  operations 
than  Great  Bear  Lake,  and  Great  Bear  Lake  is  to  be 
the  retreat  of  Sir  John  Bichardson.' 

"  "What  retreat  could  Mr.  Simpson  have  meant  but 
Great  Slave  Lake,  the  retreat  of  the  land  party  in  search 
of  Sir  John  Boss  ?  and  what  other  road  to  the  unex- 
plored ground,  the  western  land  of  North  Somerset, 
could  that  traveler  have  meant  than  Great  Fish  Biver, 
that  stream  which  I  have  pointed  out  as  the  ice  free 
and  high  road  to  the  land  where  the  lost  expedition  is 
likely  to  be  found,— to  be  the  boundary  of  that  pass- 
age which  for  thr^  and  a  half  centuries  we  have  been 
in  vain  endeavoring  to  reach  in  ships  ? " 
^  Captain  Sir  W.  E.  Parry,  to  whom  Dr.  King's  pro- 
posal was  submitted  by  the  Admiralty,  thus  comments 
on  it :—  '  i 

"  Mv  former  opinion,  quoted  by  Dk  King,  as  to  the 
difficulty  of  ships  penetrating  to  the  westward  beyond 
Ca^e  Bimdas,  (the  southwestern  extremity  of  Melville 
Island,)  remains  unaltered  ;  and  I  should  exj)ect  that 
Sir  John  Franklin,  being  aware  of  this  difficulty,  would 
use  his  utmost  efforts  to  get  to  the  southward  and  west- 
ward before  he  approached  that  point,  that  is,  between 
tile  100th  and  110th  degree  of  longitude.    The  more  1 


OPINIONS  AND  SUGOBSTIONft 


2« 


have  considered  this  subject^  (wliidx  has  ntJtiaaXij  oqcw 
pied  i^uch  of  ray  attention  lately,)  the  more  difficult  I 
tiiid  it  to  conjecture  where  the  expedition  may  have 
stopped,  either  with  or  without  any  serious  accident  to 
llie  ships ;  but  as  no  information  lias  reached  us  up  to 
this  time,  I  conceive  that  there  is  some  considerable 
probability  of  their  being  situated  somewhere  between 
the  longitude  I  have  just  named  ;  bow  &.r  they  mav 
have  penetrated  to  the  southward,  between  those  merit- 
dians,  must  be  a  matter  of  speculation,  depending  on 
the  state  of  the  ice,  and  the  existence  of  land  in  a  space 
hitherto  blank  on  our  maps.  ^ 

'^  Be  this  as  it  may,  I  consider  it  not  improbable,  as  * 
suggested  by  Dr.  King,  that  an  attempt  will  be  made 
by  them  to  fell  back  on  the  western  coapt  of  North 
Somerset,  wherever  that  may  be  found,  as  being  tlie 
nearest  point  affording  a  hope  of  communication,  either 
with  whalers  or  with  ships  sent  expressly  in  seardi  of 
the  expedition. 

"Agreeing  thus  &r  with  Dr.  King,  I  am  compelled 
to  diuer  witn  him  entirely  as  to  the  readiest  mode  of 
reaching  that  coast,  because  I  feel  satisfied  that,  with 
the  resources  of  the  expedition  now  equipping  under 
Sir  James  Eoss,  the  energy,  skill,  and  intelligence  of 
that  officer  will  render  it  a  matter  of  no  very  difficult 
enterprise  to  examine  the  coast  in  question,  either  with 
his  snips,  boats,  or  traveling  parties ;  whereas  an  at» 
tempt  to  reach  that  coast  by  an  expedition  from  the 
continent  of  America  must,  as  it  appears  to  me^  be  ex- 
tremely hazardous  and  uncertain.  And  as  I  under- 
stand it  to  be  their  lordships'  intention  to  direct  Sir 
James  Koss  to  station  one  of  nis  slups  somewhere  about 
Cape  "Walker,  while  the  other  proceeds  on  the  search, 
and  likewise  to  equip  his  boats  specially  for  the  pur- 
pose of  examining  the  rarious  coasts  and  inlets,  I  am 
decidedly  of  opinion;  that,  as  regards  the  western  coast 
of  North  Somerset,  this  plan  wul  be  much  more  likely 
to  answer  the  proposed  object,  than  any  overland 
expedition.  This  object  will,  of  course,  be  the  more 
easily  accomplished  in  case  of  Sir  James  Ross  finding 


224 


PROGRESS  OF  ARCnO  DISOCVEBT. 


tbo  western  coast  of  North  Somerset  navigable  for  Iiig 
ships. 

"  In  regard  to  Dr.  King's  suggestion  respecting  Vic 
toria  Land  and  WoUaston  Land,  supposing  Sir  John 
Franklin's  ships  to  have  been  arrested  between  the 
meridians  to  which  I  have  already  alluded,  it  does 
seem,  bj  an  inspection  of  the  map,  not  improbable  that 
parties  mav  attempt  to  penetrate  to  the  continent  in 
that  direction ;  but  not  being  well  acquainted  with  the 
facilities  for  reaching  the  coast  of  America  opposite 
those  lands  in  the  manner  proposed  by  Dr.  King,  I  am 
not  competent  to  judge  of  its  practicability." 

Nearly  the  whole  of  the  west  coast  of  North  Somer- 
set and  "Boothia  was,  (^it  will  be  found  hereafter,)  ex- 
plored b^  parties  in  boats  detached  from  Sir  James 
Koss's  ships' in  1849.  ' 

I  append,  also,  the  most  important  portions  of  Sir 
James  Koss's  remarks  on  Dr.  King's  plan. 

"  Dr.  King  begins  by  assuming  that  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin has  attempted  to  push  the  ships  through  to  the  west- 
ward, between  Melville  Island  and  Banks'  Land,  (al- 
thouffh  directly  contrary  to  his  instructions;)  that  hav- 
ing been  arrested  by  insurmountable  difliculties,  he 
would  have  'turned  the  prows  of  his  vessels  to  the 
south  and  west,  accoi*ding  as  Banks'  Land  tends  for 
Victoria  or  WoUaston  Land ;'  and  having  been  wrecked, 
or  from  any  other  cause  obliged  to  abandon  their  ships, 
their  crews  would  take  to  the  boats,  and  make  for  the 
west  coast  of  North  Somerset. 

"If  the  expedition  had  &ilod  to  penetrate  to  the 
westward  between  Banks'  Land  and  Melville  Inland,  it 
is  very  probable  it  would  have  next  attempted  to  gain 
the  continent  by  a  more  southerly  course  ;  and  suppos- 
inff  that,  after  making  only  small  progress,  (sav  100 
mfles,)  to  the  southwest,  it  should  have  been  th^n  finally 
stopped  or  wrecked,  the  calamity  will  have  occurred 
in  about  latitude  72  i°  N.,  and  longitude  115°  W,  Tliia 
point  is  onl^  280  miles  from  the  Coppermine  River 
and  420  miles  from  the  Mackenzie,  either  of  whicl 
would,  therefore,  be  easily  attainable,  and  at  each  of 


OPmi<»r8  AND  BUOGESTIQirg. 


295 


wHcb,  abundance  of  prorision  miffht  be  procured  hj 
them,  and  their  return  to  England  a  measnro  of  no 
great  difficulty. 

"  At  the  point  aboTe  mentioned,  the  distance  from 
the  west  coast  of  North  Somerset  is  probably  about  360 
miles,  and  the  mouth  of  the  Greaj;  Fish  River  full  600 ; 
at  neither  of  these  places  could  they  hope  to  obtain  a 
eingle  day's  provisions  for  so  larce  a  party ;  and  Sir 
John  Franklin's  intimate  knowledge  oi  the  impossibil- 
i.  /  of  ascending  that  river,  or  obtaining  any  food  for 
his  party  in  passing  through  the  Barren  grounds,  would 
concur  in  deterring  him  from  attempting  to  gain  either 
of  these  poi|ds. 

"  I  think  it  most  probable  that,  from  the  situation 
pointed  out,  he  would,  when  compelled  to  abandon  his 
ghips,  endeavor  in  the  boats  to  retrace  his  steps,  and 
passing  through  the  channel  by  which  he  had  advanced, 
and  which  we  have  alwavs  round  of  easy  navigation, 
seek  the  whale  ships  which  annually  visit  the  west  coast 
of  Baffin's  Bay. 

"  It  is  far  more  probable,  however,  that  Sir  John 
Franklin,  in  obedience  to  his  instructions,  would  en 
deavor  to  push  the  ships  to  the  south  and  west  as  soon 
as  they  passed  Gape  W  alker,  and  the  consequence  of 
such  a  measure,  owing  to  the  known  prevalence  of 
westerly  wind,  and  the  drift  of  the  main  body  of  the 
ice,  would  be  (in  my  opinion)  their  inevitable  embarrass^ 
ment,  and  if  he  persevered  in  that  direction  which  he 
probably  would  do,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  stating  my 
conviction  he  would  never  be  able  to  extricate  his 
ships,  and  would  ultimately  be  obliged  to  abandon  them. 
It  is  therefore  in  latitude  73®  N.  and  longitude  105*  W. 
tliat  we  may  expect  to  find  them  involved  in  the  ice, 
or  shut  up  in  some  harbor.  This  is  almost  the  only 
point  in  which  it  is  likely  they  would  be  detained,  or 
from  which  it  would  not  be  possible  to  convey  intWrma- 
tion  of  their  situation  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Settlements. 

"  If,  then,  we  suppose  the  crews  of  the  ships  should 
be  compelled,  either  this  autumn  or  next  spring,  to 
abandon  their  vessels  at  or  near  tliis  point,  they  would 


ad6 


PBOaUSW  OF  ABCmO  DIBOOVEBT. 


moet  ftasuredly  endeavor,  iniheir  boats,  to  reach  Lan- 
caster Souod ;  but  I  cannot  oonoeive  any  position  in 
which  thej  could  be  placed  from  which  they  would 
make  fbr  Uie  Great  Fish  Siver,  or  at  which  any  partj 
descending  that  river  would  be  likely  to  overtake  tnem ; 
and  even  if  it  did,  of  what  advantage  could  it  be  to 
them? 

^'  If  Dr.  King  and  his  party,  in  their  single  canoo, 
did  fall  in  with^ir  John  !Franklin  and  his  party  on  the 
west*t!oa8t  of  North  Somerset,  how  does  he  propose  to 
assist  them  ?  he  would  barely  have  sufficient  provision 
for  his  own  party,  and  w:ould  more  probably  be  in  a 
condition  to  require  rather  than  afford  relief.  He  could 
only  tell  them  what  Sir  John  Franklin  alitady  knojvs, 
from  former  experience,  far  better  than  Dr.  King,  that  it 
would  be  impossible  for  so  large  a  party,  or  indeed  any 
party  not  previously  provided,  to  travel  across  the  bar- 
ren grounds  to  any  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Settlements." 

*'  All  that  has  l>een  done  by  the  way  of  search  since 
February,  1848,  tends,"  persists  Dr.  Sang,  "  to  draw 
attention  closer  and  closer  to  the  Western  land  of  North 
Somerset,  as  the  position  of  Sir  John  Franklin,  and  to 
the  Great  Fish  (or  Back)  Biver,  as  the  high  road  to 
reach  it." 

Dr.  King  has  twice  proposed  to  the  Admiralty  to 
proceed  on  the  search  by  this  route.  "  It  would,"  he 
states,  ^'  be  the  happiest  moment  of  my  life  (and  my 
deliffht  at  beins  selected  from  a  long  list  of  volunteers, 
tor  the  relief  of  Sir  John  Boss,  was  very  great)  if  their 
lordships  would  allow  me  to  go  by  my  old  route,  the 
Great  Fish  Biver,  to  attempt  to  save  human  life  a  sec- 
ond time  on  the  shores  of  the  Polar  Sea.  What  I  did 
in  search  of  Sir  John  Boss  is  the  best  earnest  of  what 
I  could  do  in  search  of  Sir  John  Franklin." 

A  moetins  of  those  officers  and  gentlemen  most  con 
versaQt  with  arctic  voyages  was  convened  by  the 
Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty  on  the  17th  of 
January,  1849,  at  which  the  following  were  present  :  — 
Bear-Admiral  Sir  Francis  Beaufort,  K.  C.  B.,  Captain 
Sir  W.  E.  Parry,  R.  N.,  Captain  Sir  George  Back,  R 


liiWNiOfBns  AND  ttJQGEBTldtfi.^ 


3ST 

N.,  Captain  Sif  E.  ||icher,  B.  N.,  Colonel  Sabine,  B. 
A.,  ana  the  Rev.  Br.  Scoresby. 

A  very  pretty  painting,  containing  portraits  of  all  the 
principal  arctic  voyagers  in  consultation  on  these  mo- 
mentous matters,  haslieeii  made  by  Mr.  Pearse,  artist, 
of  53,  Bertiere  Street,  Oxford  Street,  which  is  well 
worthy  of  a  visit.  The  beautiful  Arctic  Panorama  of 
Mr.  Burford,  in  Leicester  Square,  will  also  give  a' 
graphic  idea  of  the  scenery  and  appearance  of  the  icy 
regions;  the  whole  b#tng  designed  from  authentic 
sketches  by  Lieut.  Browne,  now  of  th€f  Besolute,  and 
who  was  out  in  the  Enterprise  in  her  trip  in  1848,  and 
also  with  Sir  James  Boss  in  his  antarctic  voyage. 

^^he  exp^lition  under  Sir  James  Boss  having  re* 
turned  unsuccessful,  other  measures  of  relief  were  now 
determined  on,  and  the  opinions  of  the  leading  officers 
again  taken. 

Admiral  Sir  Francis  Beaufort,  in  his  report  to  the 
Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty,  on  J^ovember 
24th,  1849,  observes :  — 

"  There  are  four  ways  only  in  which  it  is  likely  that 
the  Erebus  and  TeiTor  would  have  been  lost^ — by  fire, 
by  sunken  rocks,  by  storm,  or  by  being  crushed  be- 
tween two  fields  of  ice.  Both  vessels  would  scarcelj' 
have  taken  fire. together ;  if  one  of  them  had  struck  on  a 
rock  the  other  would  have  avoided  the  dan^ei?  Storms 
in  those  narrow  seas,  encumbered  with  ice,  raise  no 
swell,  and  could  produce  no  such  disaster ;  and  there- 
fore, by  the  fourth  cause  alone  could  the  two  vessels 
have  been  at  once  destroyed ;  and  evei  in  that  case 
the  crews  would  have  escaped  upon  the  ice  (as  happens 
every  year  to  the  whalers;)  they  would  have  saved 
their  loose  boats,  and  reached  some  part  of  the  American 
shores.  As  no  traces  of  any  such  event  have  been  found 
on  any  part  of  those  shores,  it  may  therefore  be  safely 
affirmed  that  one  ship  At  least,  and  both  the  crews, 
are  still  in  existence;  and  therefore  the  point  where 
they  now  are  is  the  great  matter  for  consideration.  . 
'  "Their  orders  would  have  carried  them  toward  Mel- 
ville Island,  and  then  out  to  the  westward,  where  it  ia 
J 


s 


22|L  PAOGBESS  OF  ABCTIO  DISGOYEBT 

therefore  probable  that  they  and  entangled  amone 
islands  and  ice.  For  should  they  have  been  arrested 
at  some  intermediate  place,  for  instance,  Gape  "Walker, 
or  at  one  of  the  northern  chain  of  islands,  tney  would, 
undoubtedly,  in  the  course  of  the  three  following  years, 
have  contrived  some  method  of  sending  notices  ot  theii 
position  to  the  shores  of  North  Somerset  or  to  Barrow's 
Strait. 

"If  they  had  reaohed  much  to  the  southward  of 
Bank's  Land,  they  would  sure]jr  have  communicated 
with  me  tribes  qn  Mackenzie  Kiver ;  and  if,  failing  to 
get  to  the  westward  or  southward,  they  had  returned 
with  the  intention  of  penetrating  through  Wellington 
Channel,  they  would  have  detached  partie%  on  the  ice 
toward  Barrow's  Strait,  in  order  to  have  deposited 
statements  of  their  intentions. 

"  The  general  conclusion,  therefore,  remains,  that  they 
are  still  locked  up  in  the  Archipelago  to  the  westward 
of  Melville  Island.  Now,  it  is  well  known  that  the 
state  of  the  weather  alternates  between  the  opposite 
sides  of  Northern  America,  being  mild  on  the  one  when 
rigorous  on  the  other ;  and  accordingly,  during  the  two 
last  years,  which  have  been  unusually  severe  in  iBaffin's 
Bay,  the  united  States  whalers  were  successfully  trav- 
ersmg  the  Polar  Sea  to  the  northward  of  Behring's 
Straits.  !jjie  same  severe  weather  may  possibly  prevail 
on  the  eastern  side  during  the  summer  of  1850,  and  if 
so,  it  is  obvious  that  an  attempt  should  be  now  made 
by  the  western  openinff,  and  not  merely  to  receive  the 
two  ships,  if  they  shomd  be  met  coming  out  (as  for- 
merly,) but  to  advance  in  the  direction  of  Melville 
Island,  resolutely  entering  the  ice,  and  employing  every 
possible  expedient  by  sledging  parties,  by  reconnoitering 
balloons,  and  by  blasting  tne  ice,  to  communicate  with 
them. 

"lliese  vessels  should  be  ^intrepidly  commanded, 
effectively  manned,  and  supplied  with  the  best  means 
for  traveling  acrosd  the  ice  to  the  English  or  to  the 
Russian  setSements,  as  it  will  be  of  the  greatest  impcr-^ 
tance  to  be  infonned  of  what  prog)"^8s  the  expedition 


■v^ 


OrXNiqNS  AND  SliMQKSTlOKiA. 


220 


has  made;  and  £H|thi8  purpose  likewise  the  Plover 
will  be  of  materiaT service,  lying  at  some  advanced 
point  near  Icy  Gape,  and  read  v  to  receive  intelligence^ 
and  to  convey  it  to  Petropanlsld  or  to  Panama. 

^' These  vessels  should  enter  Behring's  Straits  before 
the  first  of  August,  anil  therefore  eyerv  effort  should 
bo  now  made  to  dispatch  them  from  Enffland  before 
Christmas.  They  ml^ht  water  at  the  Falldand  Islands, 
and  a^ain  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  where  they  would 
be  ready  to  receive  a^itional  instructions  via  Panama, 
by  one  of  the  PaclfiPBteamers,  and  by  which  vessel 
they  might  be  pushed  on  some  little  distance  to  the 
northward. 

''  It  8eeq[is  to  me  likely  that  the  ships  have  been  push- 
ing on,  summer  after  summer,  in  the  direction  of  6ehr- 
ing's  Straits,  and  are  detained  somewhere  in  the  space 
Bouthwestward  of  Banks'  Land.  On  the  other  hand, 
Bhould  they,  after  the  first  or  second  summer,  have  been 
unsuccesalul  in  that  direction,  they  may  have  attempted 
to  proceed  to  the  northward,  either  through  Wellington 
.Channel,  or  through  some  other  of  the  openings  among 
the  same  group  oi  islands.  I  do  not  myself  attach  any 
superior  importance  to  Wellington  Channel  as  regards 
the  northwest  passage,  but  I  understand  that  Sir  John 
Franklin  did,  and  uiat  he  strongly  expressed  to  Lord 
Haddington  his  intention  of  attempting  that  route,  if 
he  should  fail  in  effecting  the  more  direct  passage  to 
the  westw^d. 

"The  ships  having  beien  fully  victualed  for  three 
years,  the  resources  may,  by  due  precautions,  have 
been  extended  to  four  years  for  the  whole  crews ;  but 
it  has  occurred  to  me,  since  I  had  the  honor  of  confer- 
ring with  their  lordships,  that,  if  their  numbers  have 
been  gradually  diminished  to  any  considerable  extent 
by  death,  (a  contingency  which  is  but  too  probable,  con- 
sidering their  unparalleled  detention  in  the  ice,)  the 
resources  would  be  proportionably  extended  for  the 
survivors,  whom  it  might,  therefore,  be  found  expedient 
to  transfer  to  one  of  toe  ships,  with  all  the  remaining 
stores,  and  with  that  one  ship  to  continue  the  endeavor 


380 


PROORBM  OF  ABOTtO  1>: 


SltT. 


to  push  westward,  or  to  retnm  to  tHI^  eastward,  as  ci^ 
oumstances  might  render  expedient ;  in  that  case,  tho 
necessity  for  quitting  both  the  ships  in  the  past  sum- 
mer might  not  improbably  hare  been  obviated. 

^  Under  these  circnmstances,  which,  it  must  be  admit 
ted,  amount  to  no  more  than  mSte  conjecture,  it  seems 
to  me  expedient  still  to  prosecute^  the  search  in  both 
directions)  namely,  by  way  of  Behnnc's  Strait  (to  which 
I  look  with  the  strongest  hope,)  and  also  by  that  of 
Barrow's  Strait.  In  the  latter  direction,  it  ought,  I 
think,  to  be  borne  in  mind,  that  tne  more  than  usual 
difficulties  with  which  Sir  James  Eoss  had  to  contend, 
have,  in  reality,  left  us  with  very  little  more  informa- 
tion than  before  he  left  England,  and  I  cannot  contem- 
plate without  serious  apprehension,  leaving  that  opening 
without  still  further  search  in  the  ensuing  spring,  }t\ 
case  the  missing  crews  have  fallen  back  to  the  eastern 
coast  of  North  Somerset,  where  they  would  naturally 
look  for  supplies  to  be  deposited  for  them,  in  addition 
to  the  chance  of  finding  some  of  those  left  by  the  Fury. 
For  the  purpose  of  farther  pursuing  the  search  by  way 
of  Barrow's  Strait,  perhaps  two  small  vessels  of  160  or 
200  tons  might  suffice,  but  they  must  be  square  rii:'e;ed 
for  the  navigation  among  the  ice.  Of  com'se  the  object 
of  such  vessels  would  be  nearly  that  which  Sir  James 
Ross's  endeavors  have  failed  to  accomplish ;  and  the 
provisions,  <fec.,  left  by  that  officer  at  Whaler  Point, 
as  well  as  any  which  may  be  deposited  in  that  neigh- 
borhood by  the  North  Star,  would  greatly  add  to  the  re- 
sources, facilitate  the  operations,  and  lessen  the  risk  of 
any  attempt  made  in  tnat  direction. 

"  K,  however,  there  be  time  to  get  ships  to  Behring's 
Straits  by  the  first  week  in  August,  1860,  which  wt)uld 
perhaps  require  the  aid  of  steam  vessels  to  accomplish 
with  any  degree  of  certainty,  I  recommend  that  the 
Enterpnse  and  Investigator  be  forthwith  equipped  and 
dispatched  there,  with  instructions  to  push  through  the 
ice  to  the  E.  N.  E.  as  far  as  possible  in  the  ensuing  sea- 
son, with  the  hope  of  meeting  with  at  least  one  of  the 
ships,  or  any  of  the  parties  which  may  have  been 


» 


\    r 


■f 


.Yj  i«nvxoKB  Avo  mjQQmmojx% 


981 


iletadied  from  thelK.  This  attempt  has  uever  yot  been 
made  by  any  ships,  and  I  cling  very  strongly  to  the 
belief  that  such  an  effort  might  bo  attended  with  suo* 
cess  in  rescuing  at  least  a  portion  of  onr  people. 

^'  My  reason  for  urging  tnis  upon  their  Lordsliips  is, 
that  the  admirable  instructions  under  which  the  Plover, 
assisted  by  the  Herald,  is  acting,  embraces  only  the 
search  of  the  coast  line  eastward  from  Icy  Cape ;  since 
the  boats  and  baidars  cannot  effect  any  thing  except  by 
creeping  along  as  ^feortunities  offer,  between  the  ice 
and  the  land,  so  that  this  plan  of  operations  meets  only 
the  contingency  of  parties  reaching,  or  nearly  reaching, 
the  land ;  whereas  the  chance  ot  rescue  would,  as  it 
appears  to  me,  be  immensely  increased  by  ships  push- 
ing on,  clear  of  the  coast,  toward  Banks'  Land  and 
Melville  Island,  as  far  at  least  as  might  be  jpracticabl 
in  the  best  five  or  six  weeks  of  the  season  of  1850.'' 

Captain  Parry  says  — ^' Although  this  is  the  $rst  at- 
tempt ever  made  to  enter  the  ice  in  this  direction,  with 
ships  properly  equipped  for  the  purpose,  there  is  no 
reason  to  anticipate  any  greater  dimculties  in  this  navi- 
gation than  those  encountered  in  other  parts  of  the 
Sorth  Polar  Sea ;'  and,  even  in  the  event  of  not  suc- 
ceeding in  reaching  Banks'  Land  in  the  summer  of  tho 
present  year,  it  may  bo  possible  to  make  such  progress 
as  to  afford  a  reasonable  hope  of  effecting  that  object 
in  the  following  season  (1851.)  Indeed  it  is  possible 
that,  from  the  well  known  fact  of  the  climate  being 
nlore  temperate  in  a  given  parallel  of  latitude,  in  going 
westward  from  the  Mackenzie  River,  some  comparative 
advantage  may  be  derived  in  the  navigation  of  this 
part  of  tne  Polar  Sea. 

"It  is  of  importance  to  the  security  of  the  ships  and 
of  their  crews  that  they  should  winter  in  some  harbor 
or  bay  not  at  a  distance  from  land,  where  the  ice  might 
be  in  motion  during  the  winter ;  and  it  will  be  desira- 
ble, should  no  land  be  discovered  fit  for  this  purpose, 
in  the  space  at  present  unexplored  between  Point  Bar- 
row and  Banks'  Land,  that  endeavors  should  be  made  to 
reach  the  continent  about  the  mouth  of  the  Mackenzie 


S82 


PKOOBnS  OF  ASOnO  mSOOTflftT. 


River,  or  ftirther  eastward,  toward  tiiverpool  Bay, 
where  there  is  ix^ason  to  suppose  that  sufficient  slicltcr 
may  be  found,  and  in  which  neighborhood,  it  appeai*B. 
there  is  generally  no  ice  to  be  seen  from  the  shoi-e  foi 
about  six  weeks  in  the  months  of  August  and  Septcm 
ber.  Sir  John  Franklin's  narrative  of  his  second  jour 
ney,  that  of  Messrs.  Dease  and  Simpson,  and  the 
Admiralty  Charts,  will  furnish  the  requisite  Eydro 
graphical  information  relative  to  this  line  of  coast,  sc 
tar  as  it  has  been  attained.       w 

"  The  utmost  economy  should  be  exercised  in  the  uso 
of  provisions  and  fuel  during  the  time  the  ships  are  in 
winter  quarters  ;  and  if  they  should  winter  on  or  near 
the  contment,  there  would  probably  be  an  opportunity 
of  increasing  their  stock  of  provisions  by  means  of 
game  or  fish,  and  likewise  ot  fbel,  by  drift  or  othe/ 
wood,  to  some  considerable  amount.  ' 

<*  a  the  progress  of  the  thips  in  1850  has  been  con- 
siderable— for  instance,  as  far  as  the  meridian  of  120° 
"W. — the  probability  is,  that  the  most  practicable  way 
of  returning  to  England  will  be,  still  to  push  on  in  the 
same  direction  dunng  the  whole  season  of  1851,  with 
a  view  to  reach  Barrow's  Strait,  and  take  advantage, 
if  necessary,  of  the  resources  left  by  Captain  Sir  James 
Ross  at  Wnaler  Point,  near  Leopold  Harbor ;  if  not  the 
same  season,  at  least  after  a  second  winter.  If,  on  the 
other  hand,  small  progress  should  have  been  made  to 
the  eastward  at  the  close  of  the  present  summer,  it 
tnight  be  prudent  that  when  half  the  navigable  season 
of  1861  shall  have  expired,  no  further  attempts  should 
be  made  in  proceeding  to  the  eastward,  and  that  the 
remaining  half  of  that  season  should  be  occupied  in 
returning  to  the  westward,  with  a  view  to  escape  from 
th^  ice  by  way  of  Behring's  Straits  after  the  winter  of 
1851-52,  60  as  not  to  incur  the  risk  of  passing  a  third 
winter  in  the  ice. 

"  During  the  summer  season,  the  most  vigilant  look- 
out should  be  kept  from  the  mast-heads  of  both  ships 
night  and  day,  not  only  for  the  missing  ships,  but  for 
iny  detacl.ed  parties  belonging  to  them ;  and  during 


■?• 


OIlinoKB  AND  SCOOESTIOMS. 


288 


the  few  hours  of  dnrkncss  which  prevail  toward  the  close 
of  each  Bcnson^B  navii^ation,  and  also  when  in  winter 
nimi'tei's,  signnls,  hy  iircs,  blue  lights,  rockets  or  gnns, 
eiiould  be  made  as  the  moans  of  pointing  out  the  posi- 
tion of  the  ships  to  any  detached  parties  belonging  to 
tlie  missing  expedition.  A.nd  in  the  spring  betore  the 
sliips  can  1)0  released  from  the  ice,  searching  parties 
migiit  b9  sent  out  in  various  directions,  either  in  boats 
or  by  land,  to  examine  the  neighboring  coasts  and  inlets 
for  any  trace  of  the  najjising  crews." 

Captain  Sir  George  Back  also  comments  (1st  of  De- 
cember, 1849,)  on  these  intentions,  in  a  letter  to  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Admiralty  : — 

^'  You  will  be  pleasea.  Sir,  to  impress  upon  my  Lords 
Commissioners,  that  I  wholly  reject  all  and  every  idea 
of.  any  attempts  on  the  part  of  Sir  John  Franklin  to 
send  boats  or  detachments  over  the  ice  to  any  part  of 
the  main-land  eastward  of  the  Mackenzie  River,  because 
I  can  say  from  experience,  that  no  toil-worn  and  e^- 
haufited  party  could  have  the  least  chance  of  existence 
by  going  there. 

"  On  the  other  hand,  from  my  knowledge  of  Sir  John 
Franklin,  (havinff  been  three  times  on  discovery  to- 
gether,) I  much  doubt  if  he  would  quit  his  ship  at  all, 
except  ih  a  boat ;  for  any  attempt  to  cross  the  ice  a  long 
distance  on  foot  would  be  tempting  death ;  and  it  is  too 
laborious  a  task  to  sledge  far  over  such  an  uneven  sur- 
face as  those  regions  generally  present.  That  great 
mortality  must  have  occurred,  and  that  one  ship,  as  Sir 
E.  Beaufort  hints  at,  may  be  lost,  are  greatly  to  be  feared ; 
arid,  as  on  all  former  expeditions,  if  the  survivors  are 
paralyzed  by  the  depressmg  attacks  of  scurvy,  it  would 
then  be  impossible  for  them,  however  desirous  they 
mi^ht  be,  to  leave  the  ship,  which  must  thus  become 
tlieir  last  most  anxious  aboae. 

"If,  however,  open  water  should  have  allowed  Sir 
John  Franklin  to  have  resorted  to  his  boats,  then  I  am 
persuaded  he  would  make  for  either  ihe  Mackenzie 
River,  or,  which  is  far  more  likely,  from  tlie  almost 
certainty  lie  must  have  felt  of  finding  provision,  Capa 
Clarenc">  and  I^^iirv  Point 


m 


234 


1>B00BKS8  OF-  ABCTIO  DISCOVERY. 


s 


"  I  am  aware  that  tlio  whole  cuanccs  of  life  in  this 
)ainfnl  case  depend  on  food;  but  wlien  I  reflect  on 
ir  John  Franklin's  former  extmordinary  preservation 
mulor  miseries  and  trials  of  the  most  severe  description, 
living  often  on  scraps  of  old  leather  and  other  refuse,  I 
cannot  despair  of  his  finding  the  means  to  prolong  exist- 
ence till  aia  be  ha|)pily  sent^iim." 

Dr.  Sir  John  Bichardson  on  the  same  day  also  sends 
in  liis  opinion,  as  requested,  on  the  proposed  dispatcit 
of  tlie  Enter2:>riso  and  Investi^||or  to  Bemins's  Strait : 

"  It  seems  to  mo  to  be  very  desirable  that  the  western 
shores  of  the  Archipelago  of  Parry's  Islands  should  bo 
searched  in  a  high  latitude  in  the  manner  proposed  by 
the  hydrographer. 

"  If  the  proposed  expedition  succeeds  in  establishing 
its  winter  quartere  among  these  islands,  parties  ,.d2- 
tached  over  the  ice  may  travel  to  the  eastward  and 
southeastward,  so  as  to  cross  the  lino  of  search  which  it 
is  hoped  Mr.  Rae  has  been  able  to  pursue  in  the  present 
summer,  and  thus  to  determine  whether  any  traces  of 
the  missing  ships  exist  in  localities  the  most  remote 
from  Behring's  Strait  and  Lancaster  Sound,  and  from 
whence  shipwrecked  crews  would  find  the  greatest  diffi- 
culty in  traveling  to  any  place  wliere  they  could  hope 
to  find  relief.  • 

<^  "  The  climate  of  Arctic  America  improves  in  a  sensi- 
ble manner  with  an  increase  of  western  longitude.  On 
the  Mackenzie,  on  the  135th  meridian,  the  summer  is 
wanner  than  in  any  district  of  the  continent  in  the  same 

{)arallel,  and  it  is'  still  finer,  and  the  vegetation  more 
uxuriant  on  the  banks  of  the  Yucon,  on  the  150th  me- 
ridian. This  superiority  of  climate  leads  me  to  infer, 
that  shins  well  fortified  against  drift-ice,  will  find  the 
navigatfon  of  the  Arctic  Seas  more  practicable  in  its 
western  portion  than  it  has  been  found  to  the  eastward. 
This  inference  is  supported  by  my  own  personal  expe- 
rience, as  far  as  it  goes.  I  met  with  no  ice  in  .the  month 
of  August,  on  my  late  voyage,  till  I  attained  the  123d 
meridian,  and  which  I  was  led,  from  tliat  circumstance, 
to  suppose  coincided  with  the  western  limits  of  Parry'i 
Arcliiiielasfc  ^ 


OPINIOMS   AKD  SU00]*:STIOMS. 


S85 


*TIic  gix:fttcr  facility  of  navigating  from  the  west  has 
been  powerfully  advocated  by  othei-s  on  former  occa- 
Bions ;  and  the  chief,  perhaps  tlio  only  reason  why  the 
attempt  to  penetrate  the  Polar  Sea  from  that  quarter 
lias  not  been  resumed  since  the  time  of  Cook  is,  thai 
the  length  of  the  previous  voyage  to  Behring's  Straii 
would  considerably  diminish  the  store  of  provisions ; 
but  the  facilities  ot  «obtaining  supplies  in  the  Pacific  are 
now  so  au^ncuted,  that  this  objection  has  no  longer  the 
game  force." 

'^'  Captain  F.  W.  Beechey,  writing  from  Cheltenham, 
on  the  1st  of  December,  1849,  says ; — 

"  I  quite  agree  with  Sir  Francis  Beaufort  in  what  ho 
has  stated  with  regard  to  any  casualties  which  Sir  J. 
Franklin's  ships  may  have  snttained,  and  entirely  agree 
with  him  and  Sir  Edward  Parry,  that  the  expeaition  is 
probably  hampered  among  the  ice  somewhere  to  the 
Bouthwestward  of  Melville  Island  ;  but  there  is  yet  a 
possibility  which  does  not  appear  to  have  been  contem- 
plated, which  is,  that  of  the  scurvy  having  spread  among 
the  crew,  and  incapacitated  a  large  propoiiiion  of  them 
from  making  any  exertion  toward  their  release,  or  that 
the  whole,  in  a  debilitated  state,  may  yet  be  clinging 
by  their  vessels,  existing  sparingly  upon  the  provision 
which  a  large  mortality  may  have  spun  out,  in  the  hope 
of  relief. 

'^  In  the  first  case,  that  of  the  ships  being  hampered 
and  the  crews  in  gOod  health,  I  think  it  certain  that,  a? 
the  resources  of  the  ships  would  bo  expended  in  May 
last.  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  crew  have  abandonee 
the  ships,  and  pushed  forward  for  the  nearest  ])oinf 
whore  they  might  reasonably  expect  assistance,  and 
which  they  could  reasonably  reach. 

"There  are  consequently  three  ppints  to  which  it 
would  be  proj)er  to  airect  attention,  and  as  the  case  is 
urgent,  every  possible  method  of  relief  should  bo  cner- 
petically  pushed  forward  at  as  early  a  period  as  possi- 
ble, ana  directed  to  those  points,  which,  I  need  scarcely 
Bay,  are  Barrow's  Strait,  Behring's  Strait,  and  the 
aorthern  coast  of  America.  ^         • 

15  J* 


236 


PROGRESS   OF  ARCTIO  DJSOOYERY. 


^  "  Of  the  measures  which  can  be  resorted  to  on  thi 
northern  coast  of  America,  the  officers  who  have  hao 
experience  there,  and  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  will 
be  able  to  judge ;  but  I  am  of  opinion  that  nothing 
should  be  neglected  in  that  quarter ;  for  it  seems  tc 
mo  almost  certain  that  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  crew, 
if  able  to  travel,  have  abandoned  their  ships  and  made 
for  the  continent ;  and  if  they  ha^e  not  sycceeded  in 
gaining  the  Hudson's  Bay  outposts,  they  have  been 
overtaken  by  winter  before  they  could  accomplish  their 
purpose. 

"Lastly  as  to  the  opinion  which  naturally  forces  itself 
upon  us,  as  to  the  utility  of  the  sending  relief  to  per- 
sons whose  means  of  subsistence  will  have  failed  them 
more  than  a  year  by  th^  time  the  relief  could  re^ch 
them,  I  would  observe,  that  a  prudent  reduction  of  the 
allowance  may  have  been  timely  made  to  meet  an 
emergency,  or  great  mortality  may  have  enabled  the 
survivors  to  subsist  up  to  the  time  required,  or  it  may 
be  that  the  crews  have  just  missed  reaching  the  points 
visited  by  our  parties  last  year  before  they  quitted  them, 
and  in  the  one  case  may  now  be  subsisting  on  the  sup- 
plies at  Leopold  Island,  or  be  housed  in  eastward  of  Point 
Barrow,  sustained  by  depots  which  have  been  fallen  in 
with,  or  by  the  native  supplies  ;  so  that  under  all  the 
circumstances,  I  do  not  consider  their  condition  so 
utterly  hopeless  that  we  should  give  up  the  expectation 
of  yet  being  able  to  render  them  a  timely  assistance. 

"  The  endeavors  to  push  forward  might  be  continued 
^ntil  the  30th  of  August,  at  latest,  at  wich  time,  if  the 
ships  be  not  near  some  land  where  they  can  conven 
iently  pass  a  winter,  they  must  direct  their  course  for 
the  inain-land,  and  seek  a  secure  harbor  in  which  they 
cottld  remain.  And  on  no  account  should  they  risk  a 
winter  in  the  pack,  in  consequence  of  the  tiaes  and 
shallow  water  lying  off  the  coast. 

"  Should  the  expedition  reach  Herschel  Island,  or 
any  other  place  of  refuge  on  the  coast  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Mackenzie  or  Colvillo  Rivers,  endeavors  should 
be  made  to  iommunicate  ini  )rmation  of  the  ships' posi- 


OPINIONS  AND  BUGGES'^TONS. 


28T 


tion  and  summer's  proceedings  through  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company  or  Russian  settlements,  and  by  means 
of  interpreters  ;  and  no  opportunity  should  be  omitted 
of  gaining  from  the  natives  information  of  the  missing 
resscls,  as  well  as  of  any  boat  expeditions  that  may  have 
^one  forward,  as  well  as  of  the  party  under  Dr.  Rae. 

"  K  nothing  should  be  heard  of  Sir  John  Franklin  in 
1850,  parties  of  ob^rvation  should  be  sent  forward  in 
the  spring  to  intercept  the  route  the  ship  would  have 
pursued,  and  in  other  useful  directions  between  winter 
quarters  and  Melville  Island  ;  taking  especial  care  that 
tney  return  to  the  ship  before  the  time  of  liberation 
of  the  ships  arrives,  which  greatly  depends  npon  their 
locality. 

"  Then,  on  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice,  should  any 
favorable  appearance  of  the  ice  present  itself,  the  expe- 
dition might  be  left  free  to  take  advantage  of  such  a 
prospect,  or  to  return  round  Point  Barrow  ;  making  it 
imperative,  however,  either  to  insure  their  return,  so 
far  as  human  foresight  may  be  exercised,  or  the  cer- 
tainty of  their  reaching  Melville  Island  at  the  close  of 
that  season,  and  so  securing  their  return  to  England 
in  1852. 

"  If,  after  all,  any  unforeseen  event  should  detain  the 
ships  beyond  the  period  contemplated  above,  every 
exertion  should  be  used,  by  means  of  boats  and  in- 
terpreters, to  communicate  with  the  Mackenzie  ;  and 
should  any  casualty  render  it  necessary  to  abandon  the 
vessels,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  reserve-ship 
will  remain  at  her  quarters  nntil  the  autuxnn  of  1858, 
unless  she  hears  of  the  safetjc  of  the  ships  and  boats 
in  other  directions  ;  while  in  the  other  quarter.  Fort 
Macpherson,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Mackenzie,  may  be 
relied  upon  as  an  asylum. 

"The  Plover,  or  reserve-ship,  should  be  provided 
with  three  years'  provisions  for  her  own  crew,  and  for 
conting;encies  besides.  She  shoul4  be  placed  as  near 
as  possible  to  Point  Barrow,  and  provided  with  inter- 
preters, and  the  means  of  offering  rewards  for  infor- 
mation; and  she  should  remain  at  her  quarters  so  long 


fi88 


PE0GBE8B  OF  ▲RCnO  DI8CX>yEBT. 


as  there  can  be  any  occasion  for  her  presence  in  the 
Arctic  Sea8  ;  or,  if  she  does  not  hear  any  thing  of  the 
expedition  under  Captain  Collinson,  as  long  as  hei 
provisions  will  last." 

Sir  John  Bichardsou  offers  the  following  advice  for 
this  expedition: — "If,"  he  says,  "it  should  winter 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Yucan  or  Colville,  that  river 
may  be  ascended  in  a  boat  in  the^month  of  June,  he- 
fore  the  sea  ice  begins  to  give  way.  The  river  varies 
in  width  from  a  mile  and  a  half  to  two  miles,  and 
flows  through  a  rich,  well-wooded  valley,  abounding  in 
moose  deer,  and  having  a  comparatively  mild  climate. 
A  Kussian  trading  post  has  been  built  on  it,  at  the  dis 
tance  of  three  or  four  days'  voyage  from  the  sea,  with 
the  current ;  but  as  the  current  is  strong,  from  nine  to 
twelve  days  must  be  allowed  for  its  ascent,  with  the 
tracking  line.  It  would  be  unsafe  to  rely  upon  receiv- 
ing a  supply  of  provisions  at  the  Eussian  post,  as  it  is 
not  likely  that  any  stock  beyond  what  is  necessary  for 
their  own  use  is  laid  up  by  the  traders ;  and  the  moose 
deer  being  a  very  shy  animal,  is  not  easily  shot  by  an 
unpracticed  hunter ;  but  the  reindeer  abound  on  the 
neighboring  hills,  and  are  much  more  approachable. 
The  white-fronted  goose  also  breeds  in  vast  flocks  in 
that  district  of  the  country,  and  may  be  killed  in  num- 
bers, without  difficulty,  in  the  month  of  June. 

"  If  the  expedition  should  winter  within  a  reason- 
able  distance  of  the  Mackenzie,  Captain  Collinson 
may  have  it  in  his  power  to  send  dispatches  to  England 
by  that  route. 

"The  river  opens  in  June,  and  as  soon  as  the  ice 
ceases'  to  drive,  may  be  ascended  in  a  boat,  with  a  fair 
wind,  under  sail,  or  with  a  tracking  line. 

"  The  lowest  post  at  present  occupied  by  the  Had- 
son's  Bay  Company  on  this  river  is  Fort  Good  Hope. 
The  site  of  this  post  has  been  changed  several  times, 
but  it  is  at  this  time  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  in 
latitude  6&^  16'  N".,  and  is  ten  or  eleven  days'  voyage 
from  the  sea.  At  Point  Separation,  opposite  to  the 
luiddle  channel  of  the  delta  of  the  river,  and  on  the 


n  I 


.'*'* 


OlilNIONS  AND  SUOGEBTIONS. 


m 


i promontory  which  separates  the  Peel  and  the  Mac- 
cenzie,  there  is  a  case  of  pemmican  (80  lbs.)  buried,  ten 
feet  distant  from  a  tree,  which  has  its  middle  branches 
lopped  off,  and  is  marked  on  the  trunk  with' a  broad 
arrow  in  black  paint.  A  fire  was  made  over  the  pit 
in  which  the  case  is  concealed,  and  th^  remains  of  the 
charcoal  will  point  out  the  exact  apot.  This  hoard 
was  visited  last  year  by  a  partji  from  Fort  Macpher- 
son.  Peel's  Elver,  when  all  was  safe. 

"Eight  bags  of  pemmican,  weighing  90  lbs.  each, 
were  deposited  at  Fort  Good  Hope  in  1848,  and  would 
remain  there  last  summer  for  the  use  of  any  boat 
parties  that  might  ascend  the  river  in  1849 ;  but  it  is 
probable  that  part,  or  the  whole,  may  have  been  used 
Dy  the  Company  by  next  year. 

"A  boat  party  should  be  furnished  with  a  small 
seine  and  a  short  herring  net,  by  the  use  of  which  a 
good  supply  of  fish  may  often  be  procured  in  the 
eddies  or  sandy  bays  of  the  Mackenzie.  They  should 
also  be  provided  with  a  good  supply  of  buck-shot,  swan< 
shot,  duck-shot,  and  gunpowder.  The  Loucheux  and 
Hare  Indians  will  readily  give  such  provisions  as  they 
may  happen  to  have,  in  exchange  for  ammunition. 
Hiey  will  expect  to  receive  tobacco  gratuitously,  as 
they  are  accustomed  to  do  from  the  traders. 

"The  Mackenzie  is  the  only  water-way  by  which 
any  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's  posts  can  be 
reached  from  the  Arctic  Sea.  There  is  a  post  on  the 
Peel  River  which  enters  the  delta  of  the  Mackenzie, 
but  no  supplies  can  be  procured  there.  To  the  east- 
ward of  the  Mackenzie  no  ship-party  would  have  a 
chance  of  reaching  a  trading  post,  the  nearest  to  the 
sea  being  Fort  Besolution,  on  Great  Slave  Lake,  situ- 
ated on  the  61st  parallel  of  latitude,  and  the  interven- 
ing hilly  country,  intersected  by  numerous  lakes  and 
rapid  rivers,  could  not  be  crossed  by  snch  a  party  ii 
less  than  an  entire  summer,  even  could  they  depenu 
on  their  guns  for  a  supply  ot  food.  Neither  would 
be  advisable  for  a  party  from  tho  ships  to  attempt  to 
reach  the  posts  on  the  Mackenzie  by  way  of  the  Cop- 


240 


PR0GRKS8  OF  ARCmO  DISCOVEBT. 


permine  River  and  Fort  Conflderce;  afl,  in  the  ab- 
sence  of  means  of  transport  across  Great  Bear  Lake, 
the  journey  round  that  Irregular  sheet  of  water,  would 
be  iong  and  hazardous.  Sear  Lake  River  is  more 
than  fitly  miles  lon^,  and  Fort  Norman,  the  nearest 
post  on  the  Mackenzie,  is  thirty  miles  above  its  mouth. 
Mr.  Rae  was  instructed  to  engage  an  Indian  iUmily  or 
two  to  hunt  on  the  t»ct  of  country  between  the  Cop- 

E ermine  and  Great  Bear  Lake  in  the  summer  of  1850 ; 
ut  no  great  reliance  can  be  placed  on  these  Indians 
remaining  long  there,  as  they  desert  their  hunting 
quarters  on  very  slieht  alarms,  being  in  continual 
dread  of  enemies,  real  or  imaginary. 

*'  A  case  of  pemmican  was  buriea  on  the  summit  ot 
the  bank,  about  four  or  five  miles  from  the  summit  of 
Cape  Bathuist,  the  spot  being  marked  by  a  pole  planted 
in  the  earth,  and  the  exact  locality  of  the  deposit  by  a  fire 
of  drifi-wood,  much  of  which  woiud  remain  unconsumed. 
"  Another  case  was  deposited  in  the  cleft  of  a  rock, 
on  a  small  battlemented  cliff,  which  forms  the  extreme 
part  of  Cape  Parry.    The  case  was  covered  with  loose 

'Btones;  and  a  pile  of  stones  painted  red  and  white, 
was  erected  immediately  in  fi-ont  of  it.    This  cliff  re- 

^fiembles  a  cocked-hat  in  some  points  of  view,  and  pro- 
jects like  a  tongue  from  the  base  of  a  rounded  niU, 
which  is  500  or  600  feet  hi^h. 

"  Several  cases  of  pemmican  were  left  exposed  on  a 

^  ledge  of  rocks  in  latitude  68°  35'  N.,  opposite  Lambert 
Island,  in  Dolphin  and  Union  Strait,  and  in  a  bay  to 
the  westward  of  Cape  Krusenstem,  a  small  boat  and 
ten  pieces  of  pemmicau  were  deposited  under  a  high 
cliff,  above  high  water  mark,  without  concealment. 
The  Esquimaux  on  this  part  of  the  coast  are -not  nu- 
merous, and  from  the  position  of  this  hoard,  it  may 
escape  discovery  by  them ;  but  I  have  every  reason  to 
believe,  that  the  locality  has  been  visited  by  Mr.  Rae  in 
the  past  summer.  A  deposit  of  larger  size,  near  Cape 
Kendall,  has  been  more  certainly  visited  by  Mr.  Rae." 
*  Captain  Sir  J.  C.  Ross  writes  from  Haslar,  11th  of 
ITebruary,  1860. 


OPINIONS  AND  SUGOE8TIONB. 


241 


"  With  respect  to  theprotaWe  position  of  tlie  Erebus 
Rnd  Terror,  I  consider  that  it  is  hardly  possible  they 
can  be  anywhere  to  the  eastward  of  Melville  Islana, 
or  within  300  miles  of  Leopold  Island,  for  if  that  wcro 
the  case,  they  would  assuredly,  during  the  last  spring, 
have  made  their  way  to  that  point,  with  the  hope  of 
receiving  assistance  from  the  whale-ships  which,  foi 
several  years  previous  to  the  departure  of  that  expedi- 
tion from  England,  had  been  in  the  habit  of  visiting 
Prince  Eegent  Inlet  in  pursuit  of  whales ;  and  in  that 
case  they  must  have  been  met  with,  or  marks  of  their 
encampments  have  been  found  by  some  of  the  numer- 
ous parties  detached  from  the  Enterprise  and  Investi- 
gator along  the  shores  of  that  vicinity  during  the  only 
priod  of  the  season  in  which  traveling  is  practicable 
in  those  regions. 

"It  is  probable,  therefore,  that  during  their  first 
Bummer,  which  was  remarkably  favorable  tor  the  navi- 
gation of  those  seas,  they  have  been  enabled  (in  obedi- 
ence to  their  orders)  t<f  push  the  ships  to  the  westward 
of  Banks'  land,  and  have  there  become  involved  in  the 
heavy  pack  of  ice  which  was  observed  from  Melville 
Island  always  to  be  setting  past  its  westernmost  point 
in  a  southeast  direction,  and  from  which  pack  they  may 
not  have  been  able  to  extricate  their  ships.  ,^ 

"  From  such  a  position,  retreat  to  the  eastward  would 
be  next  to  impossible,  while  the  journey  to  the  Mac- 
kenzie Kiver,  of  comparatively  easy  accomplishment, 
together  with  Sir  John  Franklin's  knowledge  of  the 
resources  in  the  way  and  of  its  practicability,  would 
strengthen  the  belief  that  this  measure  will  have  been 
adopted  by  them  during  the  last  spring. 

"If  this  be  assumed  as  the  present  position  of  the 
Erebus  and  Terror,  it  would  manifestly  be  far  more 
easy  and  safe  to  afford  them  relief  by  means  of  an  ex- 
pedition entering  Behring's  Straits,  than  from  any  other 
direction,  as  it  would  not  be  necessary  for  the  ships  to 
depart  so  far  fi^m  the  coast  of  North  America  as  to 
preclude  their  keeping  up  a  regular  communication 
with  the  Kussian  settlements  on  uie  River  Colville,  or 

16 


242 


PEOGBESS  OF  ABOTIO  DISCOVERY. 


those  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Mackenzie,  while  the  whole  space  between  any 
position  in  which  the  ships  might  winter,  and  Banks' 
Land  could  be  thoroughly  examined  by  traveling  'par- 
ties early  in  the  spring,  or  by  boats  or  steam  launches 
at  a  more  advanced  period  of  the  following  season." 

Mr.  W.  Snow,  in  a. letter  from  New  Yonc,  dated  7th 
of  January,  1850,  suggests  a  plan  for  a  well  organized 
expedition  of  as  manjr  men  as  could  be  fitted  out  from 
private  funds.  "  For  instance,  let  a  party  of  100  picked 
men,  well  disciplined  and  officered,  as  on  board  a  ship, 
and  accompanied  with  all  the  necessary  food,  scientinc 
instruments,  and  every  thing  useful  on  such  expeditions, 
proceed  immediately,  by  the  shortest  and  most  avail- 
able routes,  to  the  lands  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  un- 
explored regions.  If  possible,  I  would  suggest  that 
they  should  proceed  first  to  Moose  Fort,  on  the  south 
em  part  of  Hudson's  Bay,  and  thence  by  small  craft 
to  dhesterfield  Inlet,  or  otherwise  by  land  reach  that 
quarter,  so  as  to  arrive  there  atlhe  opening  of  summer. 
From  this  neighborhood  let  the  partv,  minus  ten  men, 
be  divided  into  three  separate  detachments^  each  with 
specific  instructions  to  extend  their  researches  in  a 
northerly  and  northwesterly  direction.  The  w««tem- 
most  party  to  proceed  as  near  as  possible  in  a  direct 
course  to  the  easternmost  limits  of  discovery  yefc  made 
from  Behring's  Straits,  and  on  no  account  to  deviate 
from  that  course  on  the  western  side  of  it,  but;,  if  ne- 
cessary, to  the  eastward.  Let  the  central  party  shape  a 
course  as  near  as  possible  to  the  position  of  the  Mag- 
netic Pole ;  and  the  easternmost  division  direct  tc 
Prince  Regent  Inlet,  or  the  westernmost  point  of  dis- 
covery from  the  east,  and  not  to  deviate  from  that  course 
easterly.  Let  each  of  these  detachments  be  formed 
again  into  three  divisions,  each  division  thus  ^consisting 
of  ten  men.  Let  the  first  division  of  each  detachment 
pioneer  the  way,  followed  on  the  same  track  by  tht 
second  and  the  third,  at  stated  intervals  of  time.  Or> 
the  route,  let  the  pioneers,  at  every  spot  necessary,  leave 
distinirui^ing  mark^  to^  denote  the  way,  and  also  tp 


OPINIONS   AND  BUGGE8TI0N8. 


S43 


give  information  to  either  of  the  other  two  })rincipa. 
detachments  as  may  by  chance  fall  into  their  track 
To  secoiid  the  efforts  of  the  three  detachments,  let  con 
Btant  succors  and  other  assistance  be  forwarded  by 
way  of  Moose  Fort,  and  through  *\^  ten  men  left  at 
Chesterfield  Inlet;  and  should  the  object  for  which 
each  an  expedition  was  framed  be  happily  accom- 
plished by  the  return  of  the  lost  voyagers,  let  messen- 
gers be  forwarded  with  the  news,  as  was  done  with 
Captain  Back,  in  the  case  of  Captain  Koss.  Let  each 
of  the  extreme  detachments,  upon  arriving  at  their  re- 
spective destinations,  and  upon  being  jomed  by  the 
whole  of  their  body,  proceed  to  form  plans  for  uniting 
with  the  central  party,  and  ascertaining  the  results 
already  obtained  oy  each  by  sending  parties  in  that 
direction.  Also,  let  a  chosen  number  oe  sent  out  from 
each  detachment  as  exploring  parties,  wherever  deemed 
requisite ;  and  let  no  effort  be  wanted  to  make  a  search 
in  every  direction  where  there  is  a  possibility  of  its 
proving  successful.  > 

^'  If  a  public  and  more  extensive  expedition  be  set  on 
foot,  I  would  most  respectfully  draw  attention  to  the 
following  suggestions: — ^Leta  land  expedition  be  formed 
upon  a  similar  plan,  and  with  the  same  number  of  men, 
say  300  or  more,  as  those  fitted  out  for  sea.  Let  this 
expedition  be  formed  into  three  great  divisions ;  the  one 
proceeding  by  the  Athabasca  to  the  Great  Slave  Lake, 
and  following  out  Captain  Back's  discoveries ;  the 
second,  through  the  Churchill  district;  or,  with  the 
third,  according  to  the  j>lan  laid  out  for  a  private  expe 
dition  alone ;  only  keeping  the  whole  of  their  forces  as 
mnch  as  possible  oearing  upon  the  points  where  success 
may  be  most  likely  attamaole. 

"  Each  of  these  three  great  divisions  to  be  subdivided* 
and  arranged  also  as  in  the  former  case.  The  expense 
of  an  expedition  of  this  kind,  with  all  the  necessary 
outlay  for  provisions,  &c.,  I  do  not  think  would  be  more 
than  half  what  the  same  would  cost  if  sent  by  sea  ;  but 
of  this  I  am  not  a  competent  judge,  having  no  definite 
means  to  make  a  comparison.    But  there  is  yet  another, 


r944 


PK0ORK8S  OF  AKOTIO  Dl^COVKRT.      \ 


and,  I  cannot  help  conceiving,  a  more  easy  way  of  ol> 
viating  all  difficulty  on  this  point,  and  of  reducing  tlio 
expense  considerably. 

"It  must  be  evident  that  the  present  position  of  the 
arctic  voyaeers  is  not  very  accessible,  either  by  land 
or  sea,  else  tne  distinguished  leader  at  the  head  of  tho 
expedition  would  long  ere  this  have  tracked  a  routo 
whereby  the  whole  party,  or  at  least  some  of  them 
could  return. 

"In  such  a  case,  therefore,  the  only  way  to  reach 
them  is  by,  if  I  may  use  the  expression,  ybrcm^  an  ex- 
pedition on  toward  them  ;  I  mean,  by  keeping  it  con- 
stantly upheld  and  pushing  onward.  There  may  be, 
and  indeed  there  are,  very  great  difficulties,  and  diffi- 
culties of  such  a  nature  that,  I  believe,  they  would 
themselves  cause  another  ^eat  difficulty  in  the  pr^car- 
ing  of  men.  But,  if  I  might  make  another  bold  sug- 
gestion, I  would  respectfmly  ask  our  government  at 
Home,  why  not  employ  picked  men  irom  convicted 
criminals,  as  is  done  in  exploring  expeditions  in  Aus- 
tralia }  Inducements  might  be  held  out  to  them  ;  and 
by  proper  care  they  would  be  made  most  serviceable 
auxiliaries.  Generally  speaking,  men  convicted  of 
offenses  are  men  possessed  of  almost  inexhaustible 
mental  resources ;  and  such  men  are  the  men  who, 
with  physical  powers  of  endurance,  are  precisely  those 
requirea.  But  this  I  speak  of,  merely,  if  sufficient  free 
men  could  not  be  found,  and  if  economy  is  studied.'* 

Mr.  John  McLean,  whp  has  been  twenty-five  years  a 
partner  and  officer  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  and 
has  published  an  interesting  narrative  of  his  adven- 
tures and  experience,  writing  to  Lady  Franklin  from 
Canada  West,  in  January,  1860,  suggests  the  following 
•  very  excellent  plan  as  likely  to  produce  some  intelli- 
gence, if  not  to  lead  to  a  discovery  of  the  party. 

"  Let  a  small  schooner  of  some  thirty  or  ^forty  tons 
burden,  built  with  a  view  to  draw  as  little  water  as 
possible,  and  as  strong  as  wood  and  iron  could  make 
her,  be  dispatched  from  England  in  company  with  the 
Hudson's  Say  ships.    This  vessel  would,  immediately 


OPnnoHS  AND  BUCKnanoKB. 


fAft 


on  arriving  at  York  Factory,  proceed  to  the  Strait 
termed  Sir  Thomas  Koe^s  Welcome,  which  divides 
Southampton  Island  from  the  main-land  ;  then  direct 
her  course  to  Wager  Kiver,  and  proceed  onward  until 
interrupted  by  insurmountable  oostacles.  The  party 
being  safely  landed,  I  would  recommend  their  remain- 
ing  stationar V  until  winter  traveling  became  practicable, 
when  they  snould  set  out  for  the  shores  of  the  Arctic 
Sea,  which,  by  a  reference  to  Arrowsmith's  map,  ap- 
pears to  be  only  some  sixty  or  seventy  miles  distant ; 
then  dividing  in  two  parties  or  divisions,  the  one  would 
proceed  east,  the  other  west ;  and  I  think  means  could 
be  devised  of  exploring  250  or  300  miles  in  either 
direction ;  and  here  a  very  important  question  pre- 
sents itself, —  how  and  by  what  means  is  this  enterprise 
to  be  accomplished  ?  > 

"In  the  first  place,  the  services  of  Esquimaux  would 
be  indispensable,  for  the  twofold  reason,  that  no  reliable 
information  can  be  obtained  from  the  natives  without 
their  aid,  and  that  they  alone  properly  understand  the 
art  of  preparing  sn  :>w-nouses,  or  '  igloes,'  for  winter  en- 
campment, the  only  lodging  which  the  desolate  wastes 
of  tbe  arctic  regions  afford.  Esquimaux  understanding 
the  English  language  sufficiently  well  to  answer  our 
purpose,  frequent  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's  post 
m  Labrador,  some  of  whom  might  be  induced,  (I  should 
&in  hope,)  to  engage  for  the  expedition  ,  or  probably 
the '  half-breed '  natives  might  do  so  more  readily  than 
the  aborigines.  They  should,  if  possible,  be  strong, 
active  men,  and  g^ood  marksmen,  and  not  less  than  four 
in  number.  Failing  in  the  attempt  to  procure  the  na* 
tives  of  Labrador,  then  I  should  think  Esquimaux 
might  be  obtained  at  Churchill,  in  Hudson's  Bay  ;  the 
two  who  accompanied  Sir  John  in  his  first  land  expedi- 
tion were  from  this  quarter."  ^ 

An  expedition  of  this  kind  is  to  be  sent  out  by  Lady 
Franklin  this  spring  under  the  charge  of  Mr.  Kennedy. 
There  are  various  ways  of  accomplishing  this  object, 
the  choice  of  which  must  mainly  depend  on  the  viewa 
and  wishes  of  the  officer  who  may  undertake  the  com 


V 


946 


PBOOBVM  OF  ABCmO  DUOOVSRT. 


\ 


mand.  Besides  the  northern  route,  or  that  by  Kec^nt 
Inlet,  it  is  possible  to  reach  Sir  James  Eoss  and  Simp, 
son's  Straits  from  the  south,  entering  Hudson's  Bay, 
and  passing  up  the  Welcome  to  !^e  Isthmus,  or  again 
by  entering  Chesterfield  or  Wager  Inlet,  and  gaining 
the  coast  by  Back's  or  the  Great  Fish  Eiver. 

By  either  of  these  routes  a  great  part  of  the  explora- 
tion must  be  made  in  boats  or  on  foot  In  every  case 
the  main  points  to  be  searched  are  James  Boss's  Strait 
and  Simpson's  Strait,  if  indeed  there  be  a  passage  in 
Uiat  direction,  as  laid  down  in  Sir  John  Franklin's  charts, 
though  contradicted  by  Mr.  Rae,  and  considered  still 
doubtful  by  some  arctic  navigators. 

The  following  extract  from  the  Geographical  Jour- 
nal shows  the  opinion  of  Franklin  upon  the  search  of 
this  quarter.  Dr.  Richardson  says,^— "  No  better*  plan 
can  be  proposed  than  the  one  suggested  by  Sir  John 
Franklin,  of  sending  a  vessel  to  Wager  Biver,  and  car- 
rying on  the  survey  from  thence  in  boats." 

Sir  John  Franklin  observes, f — "  The  Doctor  alludes 
in  his  letter  to  some  propositions  which  he  knew  I  had 
made  in  the  vear  1828,  at  the  command  of  his  present 
Majesty, >[WilliamIY.,)  on  the  same  subject,  and  partic- 
ularly to  th4)  suggestion  as  to  proceeding  from  Bopulse 
or  Wager  Bay.  *  *  *  A  recent  careful  r'^ading  of  all 
the  narratives  connected  with  the  surveys  of  the  W  ager 
and  Bepulse  Bays,  and  of  Sir  Edward  tarry's  Voyage, 
together  with  the  information  obtained  from  the  Esqui- 
maux by  Sir  Edward  Parry,  Sir  John  Boss,  and  Cap- 
tain Back,  confirm  me  in  opinion  that  a  successful  de- 
lineation of  the  coast  east  of  Point  Turnagain  to  the 
Strait  of  the  Fury  and  Hecla,  would  be  best  attained 
by  an  expedition  proceeding  from  Wager  Bay,  the 
northern  parts  of  wiiich  cannot,  I  think,  be  farther  dis- 
tant than  foi'ty  miles  from  the  sea,  if  the  information 
received  by  the  above-mentioned  officers  can  be  de- 
pended on." 

Dr.  McCormick  particularly  draws  attention  to  Jones' 
and  Smith's  Sounds,  recommending  a  careful  examiD 

4    •  Journal  of  Geographical  Society,  vol.  vi.  p.  40.         t  Ibid.  p.  41 


% 


OPINICNB   AKD  BUOUEBTIOIfS. 


it 


247 


qtioii  of  these  to  their  probable  termination  in  the 
Polar  Sea : — 

"  Jones'  Sound,  with  the  "Wellington  Channel  on  the 
west,  mav  be.  found  to  form  an  island  of  the  land  called 
k  North  Devon.*  All  prominent  positions  on  both  sides 
of  those  Sounds  should  be  searched  for  flag  staves  and 
])ilc8  of  stones,  under  whcih  copper  cylinders  or  bot- 
tles may  have  been  deposited,  containing  accounts  of 
the  proceedings  of  the  missing  expedition  ;  and  if  suc- 
cessful in  getting  upon  its  track,  a  clue  would  be  ob- 
tained to  the  fate  ot  our  gallant  countrymen." 

The  Wellington  Channel  he  considers  affords  one  of 
tlio  best  chances  of  crossing  the  track  of  the  missing 
expedition. 

To  carry  out  this  plan  efficiently,  he  recommended 
that  a  boat  should  be  dropped,  by  the  ship  conveying 
the  searching  party  out,  at  the  entrance  to  the  Allelling- 
ton  Channel  in  Barrow's  Strait ;  from  this  point  one  or 
both  sides  of  that  channel  and  the  northern  shores  of 
the  Parry  Islands  might  be  explored  as  far  west  as  the 
season  would  permit  of.  But  should  the  ship  be  en- 
abled to  look  into  Jones'  Sound,  on  her  way  to  Lancas- 
ter Sound,  and  find  that  opening  free  from  ice,  an 
attempt  micht  be  made  by  the  Boat  Expedition  to  push 
through  it  into  the  Wellington  Channel.  In  the  event, 
however,  of  its  proving  to  be  merely  an  inlet,  which  a 
short  delay  would  be  sufficient  to  decide,  the  ship  might 
perhaps  be  in  readiness  to  pick  up  the  boat  on  its  re- 
tiirfl,  for  conveyance  to  its  ultimate  destination  through 
Lancaster  Sound  ;  or  as  a  precaution  against  any  un- 
foreseen separation  from  the  ship,  a  depot  of  provisions 
fihonld  be  left  at  the  entrance  to  Jones'  Sound  for  the 
boat  to  complete  its  supplies  from,  after  accomplishing 
the  exploration  of  this  inlet,  and  to  afford  the  means, 
if  compelled  from  an  advanced  period  of  the  season 
or  other  adverse  circumstances,  of  reaching  some  place 
of  refuge,  either  on  board  a  whaler  or  some  one  of  the 
depots  of  provisions  on  the  southern  shores  of  Barrow's 
Strait  • 


.J-h   ■-''. 


248 


PB0QRE8S  OF  ABCmO  DISCO  VEKT. 


Mr.  Penny,  in  charge  of  the  Lady  Franklin,  before 
•ailing,  observed : — 

^^  If  an  early  passage  be  obtained,  I  would  examine 
Tones'  Sound,  as  I  have  generally  found  m  all  my  early 
voyages  clear  water  at  the  mouth  of  that  sound,  and 
*here  is  a  probability  that  an  earlier  passage  by  this 
route  might  be  found  into  Wellington  Strait,  which  out- 
let ought  by  all  means  to  be  thoroughly  examined  at 
the  earliest  opportunity,  since,  if  Sir  J.  Franklin  had 
taken  that  route,  with  the  hope  of  finding  a  passage 
westward,  to  the  north  of  the  Parry  and  Melville 
Islands,  he  may  be  beyond  the  power  of  helping  him- 
self. No  trace  of  the  expedition,  or  practical  commu- 
nication with  Wellington  Strait,  being  obtained  in  this 
quarter,  I  would  proceed  in  time  to  take  advantage  of 
the  first  opening  of  the  ice  in  Lancaster  Sound,' with 
the  vie^,  of  proceeding  to  the  west  and  entering  Wel- 
lington mrait,  or,  if  this  should  not  be  practicable,  of 
proceeding  farther  westward  to  Cape  Walker,  and  be- 
yond, on  one  or  other  of  which  places  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin will  probably  have  left  some  notices  of  his  course." 

The  government  has  seen  the  urgent  necessity  of 
causing  the  Wellington  Channel  to  be  carefully  exam- 
ined ;  imperative  orders  were  sent  to  Sir  James  Eoss 
to  search  it,  but  he  was  drifted  out  of  Barrow's  Strait 
against  his  will,  before  he  received  those  orders  by  the 
North  Star. 

I  have  already  stated  that  Sir  John  Franklin's  in- 
structions directed  him  to  try  the  first  favorable  opai- 
ing  to  the  southwest  after  passing  Cape  Walker;  and 
failing  in  that,  to  try  the  Wellington  Channel.  Every 
officer  in  the  British  Service,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
follows  his  instructions,  as  far  as  they  are  compatible 
with  the  exigencies  of  the  case,  be  it  what  it  may,  noi 
ever  deviates  from  them  without  good  and  justifiable 
cause.  If,  then.  Sir  John  Franklin  failed  in  finding  an 
opening  to  the  southwest  of  Cape  Walker  it  is  reason- 
able to  suppose  he  obeyed  his  instructions,  and  tried 
the  Wellington  Channel.  The  second  probability  in 
favor  of  this  locality  is,  that  Sir  John  Franklin  ex 


\  ■■:■ 


_»     ^       -^ 


OPINIONS  AND  8UGGEBT10NS. 


249 


«  T'  vl^   .W 


preosed  o  many  of  his  friends  a  favorable  opinion  of 
the  Wellington  Channel,  and,  which  is  of  far  more 
consequence,  intimated  his  opinion  officially,  and  be- 
fore the  expedition  was  determined  upon,  that  this 
strait  seemed  to  offer  the  best  chance  of  success. 

Moreover,  Gapt.  Fitsjames,  his  immediate  second  in 
command  in  the  Erebus,  was  strongly  in  favor  of  the 
Wellington  Channel,  and  always  so  expressed  himself 
See  his  letter,  before  quoted,  to  Sir  John  Barrow,  p.  203. 

Who  can  doubt  that  the  opinion  of  Capt.  Fitzjames, 
a  man  of  superior  mind,  beloved  by  all  who  knew  him, 
and  in  the  service  "  the  observed  of  all  observers,"  would 
have  great  weight  with  Sir  John  Franklin,  even  if  Sir 
John  had  not  been  hinttself  predisposed  to  listen  to  hinl. 
What  adds  confirmation  to  these  views  is,  that  in  1840, 
a  few  years  prior  to  the  starting  of  the  expedition.  Col. 
Sabine  published  the  deeply  interesvng  "  JN'aMOtive  of 
Baron  Wrangel's  Expedition  to  the  Polai*  Sjf  under- 
taken between  the  years  1820  and  1823,"  and  in  his  pre- 
face the  translator  points  to  the  Wellington  Chaimei  as 
the  most  likely  course  for  the  successful  accomplishment 
of  the  northwest  passage.  "Setting  aside,"  ho  says, 
"the  possibility  cf  the  existence  of  unknown  land,  the 
probaoility  of  an  open  sea  existing  to  the  north  of  the 
Parry  islands,  and  communicating  with  Behrin^  Strait, 
appears  to  rest  on  strict  analogical  reasoning."  And 
again  he  adds,  ^  all  the  attempts  to  effect  the  northwest 
passage,  since  Barrow's  Strait  was  first  passed  in  1819, 
nave  consisted  in  an  endeavor  to  force  a  vessel  by  one 
route  or  another  through  this  land-locked  and  ice-encum- 
bered portion  of  the  Polar  Ocean." 

1^0  examination  has  made  known  what  may  bo  the 
slate  of  the  sea  to  the  north  of  the  Parry  Islands; 
whether  pimilar  impediments  may  there  present  them- 
Belves  to  navigation,  or  whether  a  sea  may  not  there 
exist  offering  no  difficulties  whatever  of  the  kind,  as  M. 
Von  Wrangel  has  shown  to  be  the  case  to  the  north  of 
the  Siberian  Islands,  and  as  by  strict  analogy  we  should 
be  jiictified  in  expecting. 

Colonel  Sabine  is  an  officer  of  great  scientific  expo 


^^^r 


PROGRESS   OF   ARCrriO  DISOOVEKT. 


rience,  and  from  his  having  made  several  polar  voyages, 
he  has  devoted  great  attention  to  all  that  relates  to  that 
miarter.  He  was  in  constant  communication  with  Sir 
j'ohn  Franklin  when  the  expedition  was  fitting  out,  and 
it  is  but  reasonable  to  suppose  that  he  would  be  some- 
what guided  bv  his  opinion. 

"We  have,  then,  the  opinions  of  Franklin  himself. 
Colonel  Sabine,  and  Captain  Fit2james,  all  bearing  on 
this  point,  and  wo  must  remember  that  Parry^  who  dis- 
covered and  named  this  channel,  saw  nothing  when 
passing  and  re-passing  it,  but  a  clear  open  sea  to  the 
northward. 

Lieut.  S.  Osbom,  in  a  paper  dated  the  4th  of  January, 
1850,  makes  the  following  suffgesuons : — 

"  General  opinion  places  me  lost  expedition  to  the 
west  of  Cape  W  alker,  and  south  of  the  latitude  of  ilel- 
ville  Islip.  The  distance  firom  Cape  Bathurst  to  Banks' 
Land  is  only  301  miles,  and  on  reference  to  a  chart  it 
will  be  seen  that  nowhere  else  does  the  American  conti- 
nent approach  so  near  to  the  supposed  position  of  Frank- 
lin's expedition.  .  v 

"  Banks'  Land  bears  from  Cape  Bathurst  K.  41°  49', 
£.  302  miles,  and  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  in  the 
summer  season  a  portion  of  this  distance  may  be  trav- 
ersed in  boats. 

"Dr.  Richardson  confirms  previous  reports  of  the  ice 
Iteing  light  on  the  coast  east  of  the  Mackenzie  Biver  to 
<Jape  Bathurst,  and  informs  us  that  the  Esquimaux  had 
s<ien 'no  ice  to  seaward  for  two  moons.' 

'*  Every  mile  traversed  northward  by  a  party  from 
Cape  Bathurst  would  be  over  that  unknown  space  in 
which  traces  of  Franklin  may  be  expected.  It  is  advis- 
able that  such  a  second  party  be  dispatched  from  Cape 
Bathurst,  in  order  that  the  prosecution  of  Dr.  Rac'S 
examination  of  the  supposed  channel  between  Wollas- 
ton  and  Victoria  Lands  may  in  no  way  be  interfered 
with,  by  his  attention  being  called  to  the  westward." 

In  March,  1848,  the  Admiralty  announced  their  inten- 
tion of  rewarding  the  crews  of  any  whaling  ships  that 
brought  accurate  information  of  the  missing  expedition, 


■ « 


OPINIONS  AND  SUGGESTIONS.      1 


S5I 


with  the  sum  of  100  guineas  or  more,  according  to  cir- 
cumstances. Lady  Franklin  also  about  the  same  time 
oftered  rewards  ot  2000^.  and  3000^.,  to  be  distributed 
among  the  owner,  officers,  and  crew  discovering  and 
affording  relief  to  her  husband,  or  makinff  extraordi* 
nary  exertions  for  the  above  object,  and,  if  required, 
bringing  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  party  to  England. 
In  March,  1850,  the  following  further  rewards  were 
offered  by  the  British  government  to  persons  of  any 
country: — 

1st.  To  any  party  or  person  who  in  the  judgment  of 
theBoai^  of- Admiralty,  jahall  discover  and  effectually 
relieve  the  crows  of  H.  M.  ships  Erebus  and  Terror,  the 
sum  of  20,000Z.,  or, 

2d.  To  any  party  or  parties,  &c.,  who  shall  discover 
aud  effectually  relieve  any  portion  of  the  crews,  or  shall 
convey  such  intelligence  as  shall  lead  to  the?Mief  of 
any  of  the  r;ro  ■,  the  sum  of  10,000^. 

3d.  To  any  ^  y  or  parties  who  shall  by  virtue  of 
his  or  their  '^  >3,  first  succeed  in  ascertaining  their 
fate,  10,000Z. 

In  a  dispatch  from  Sir  George  Simpson  to  Mr.  Kae, 
dated  Lachine,  the  2l6t  of  January,  1860,  he  says : — 
"If  they  be  still  alive,  I  feel  satisfied  that  every  effort 
it  may  be  in  the  power  of  man  to  make  to  succor  them 
will  be  exerted  by  yourself  and  the  Company's  officers 
in  Mackenzie  River ;  but  should  your  late  search  have 
unfortunately  ended  in  disappointment,  it  is  the  desire 
of  the  Company  that  you  renew  your  explorations  next 
summer,  if  possible. 

"By  the  annexed  correspondence  you  will  observe  that 
the  opinion  in  England  appears  to  be  that  our  explora- 
tions ought  to  be  more  particularly  directed  to  that  por- 
tion of  the  Northern  Sea  lying  between  Cape  Walke 
on  the  oast,  Melville  Island  and  Banks'  Land  to  the 
north,  and  the  continental  shore  or  the  Victoria  Islands 
to  Ihc!  south. 

"  As  these  limits  are  believed  to  embrace  the  coui*se 
that  would  have  been  pursued  by  Sir  John  Franklin, 
Cape  Walker  being  one  of  the  points  he  was  particu* 
16  E 


252 


FE06BBSS   OF  ABOTIO   DISOOVESY. 


m 


larly  instnicted  to  make  for,  you  will  tliereforo  be 
pleased,  immediately  on  the  receipt  of  this  letter,  to  fit 
out  another  exploring  party,  to  proceed  in  the  direction 
above  indicated,  but  varying  the  route  that  may  have 
been  followed  last  summer,  which  party,  besides  their 
own  examination  of  the  coast  and  islands,  should  be 
instructed  to  offer  liberal  rewards  to  the  Esquimaux  to 
search  for  some  vestiges  of  the  missing  expedition,  and 
similar  rewards  should  be  offered  to  the  Indians  inhab 
iting  near  the  coast  and  Peel's  River,  and  the  half-bred 
hunters  of  Mackenzie  River,  the  latter  being,  perhaps, 
more  energetic  than  the  former ;  assuring  them  that 
whoever  may  procure  authentic  intelligence  Will  be 
largely  rewarded. 

"  Simultaneously  with  the  expedition  to  proceed  to* 
ward  Gape  Walker,  one  or  two  small  parties  should  be 
dispatchid  to  the  westward  of  the  Mackenzie,  in  the 
direction  of  Point  Barrow,  one  of  which  might  pass  over 
to  the  Youcon  River,  and  descending  that  stream  to  the 
sea,  carry  on  their  explorations  in  that  quarter,  while 
the  other,  going  down  the  Mackenzie,  might  trace  the 
coast  thence  toward  the  Youcon.  And  these  parties 
must  also  be  instructed  to  offer  rewards  to  the  natives 
to  prosecute  the  search  in  all  directions. 

*^  By  these  means  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  in 
the  course  of  one  year  so  minute  a  search  may  be  made 
of  the  coast  and  the  islands,  that  in  the  event  of  the 
expedition  having  passed  in  that  direction,  some  trace 
of  their  progress  would  certainly  be  discovered. 

"  From  your  experience  in  arctic  discovery,  and  pe- 
culiar qualifications  for  such  an  undertaking,  I  am  in 
hopes  you  may  be  enabled  yourself  to  assume  the 
command  of  the  party  to  proceed  to  the  northward ; 
and,  as  leaders  of  the  two  parties  to  explore  the  coast 
to  the  westward  of  the  Mackenzie,  you  will  have  to 
select  such  officers  of  the  Company's  service  within 
the  district  as  may  appear  best  qualified  for  the  duty 
Mr.  Murray,  I  think,  would  be  a  very  fit  man  for  ono 
of  the  leaders,  and  if  one  party  be  sent  by  way  of  the 
Youcon,  he  might  take  charge  of  it.    In  the  event  of 


%♦ 


OPINIONS  AKD  SUGa£8TI0JNS. 


258 


your  going  on  this  expedition,  you  will  be  pleased  to 
make  oy«i'  the  charge  of  the  district  to  Chief  Trader 
Bell  during  your  absence. 

^^In  case  you  may  be  short-handed,  I  have  by  this 
coDveyance  instructed  Chief  Factor  Ballenden  to  en- 
gage in  Bed  Kiver  ten  choice  men,  accustomed  to  boat* 
iDg,  and  well  fitted  for  such  a  duty  as  will  be  required 
of  them ;  and  if  there  be  a  chance  of  their  reaching 
Mackenzie  River,  or  even  Athabasca,  before  the  break- 
ing up  of  the  ice,  to  forward  them  immediately. 

^'Snould  the  season,  however,  be  too  liff  advanced 
to  enable  them  to  accomplish  the  journey  by  winter 
traveling,  Mr.  Ballenden  is  directed  to  increase  the 
party  to  fourteen  men,  with  a  guide  to  be  dispatched 
from  Red  River  immediately  after  the  opening  of  the 
navigation,  in  two  boats,  laden  with  provisions  and 
flour,  and  a  few  bales  of  clothing,  in  order  to  meet,  in 
some  degree,  the  heavy  drain  that  will  be  occasioned 
an  our  resources  in  provisions  and  necessary  supplies 
in  Mackenzie  River.  The  leader  of  this  party  from 
Red  River  may,  perhaps,  be  qualified  to  act  as  the 
conductor  of  one  of  the  parties  to  examine  the  coast 
to  the  westward." 

On  the  5th  of  February,  1850,  another  consultation 
took  place  at  the  Admiralty  among  those  officers  most 
experienced  in  these  matters,  and  their  opinions  in 
writing  were  solicited.  It  is  important,  therefore,  to 
Bubrait  these  as  fully  as  possible  to  the  consideration 
of  the  reader. 

The  first  is  the  report  of  the  hydrographer  of  the 
Admiralty,  dated  the  29th  of  January,  1850 :  — 

"  MemorcmdtJtm  hy  Rea/r-Adrfwral  Si/r  Frmicia  £eau 

forty  K,  a  B. 

"The  Behring's  Strait  expedition  being  at  length 
4irly  olF,  it  appears  to  me  to  be  a  duty  to  submit  to  ^ 
their  Lordships  that  no  time  should  now  be  lost  in 
equipping  another  set  of  vessels  to  reneil'  the  search 
on  the  opposite  side,  through  Baffiji'r  Bay ;  and  this 
being  the  fifth  year  that  the  Erebus  and  Terror  have 


AT  *^ 


* 


216^ 


PROQRESS   OF  ARCTTIO   DIBOOVJEEtY.  *\* 


N     (I 


beeiT  absent,  and  probably  reduced  to  only  casual  s&p- 
jjlies  of  food  and  fuel,  it  may  be  assumed  *hat  this 
search  should  be  bo  complete  and  effectual  as  to  leave 
unexamined  no  place  in  which,  by  any  of  the  supposi 
tions  that  have  been  put  forward,  it  is  at  all  likely  they 
may  be  found. 

**  Sir  John  Franklin  is  not  a  man  to  treat  his  orders 
with  levity,  and  therefore  his  first  attempt  was  un- 
doubtedly made  in  the  direction  of  Melville  Island,  and 
not  to  the  westward.  If  foiled  in  that  attenipt,  he 
naturally  hanted  to  the  southward,  and  using  Banks' 
Land  as  a  barner  against  the  northern  ice,  he  Would 
try  to  make  westing  under  its  lee.  Thirdly,  if  both  of 
these  roads  were  found  closed  against  his  advance,  he 
perhaps  availed  himself  of  one  of  the  four  passt 
between  the  Parry  Islands,  including  the  Wellini 
Channel.  Or,  lastly,  he  may  have  returned  to  Bamn's 
Bay  and  taken  the  inviting  opening  of  *  Jones'  Sound. 

"  All  those  four  tracks  must  therefore  be  diligently 
examined  before  the  search  can  be  called  complete, 
and  the  only  method  of  rendering  that  examination 
prompt  and  efficient  will  be  through  the  medium  of 
steam ;  while  only  useless  expense  and  "reiterated  dis 
appointment  will  attend  the  best  efforts  of  sailing  ves- 
sels, leaving  the  lingering  survivors  of  the  lost  ships., 
as  well  as  their  relatives  m  England,  in  equal  despair. 
Had  Sir  James  Boss  been  in  a  steam  vessel,  he  would 
not  have  been  surrounded  with  ice  and  swept  out  of 
the  Strait,  but  by  shooting  un^er  the  protection  of  Leo- 
pold Island,  he  would  have  waited  there  till  that  fatal 
field  had  passed  to  the  eastward,  and  he  then  would 
have  found  a  perfectly  open  sea  np  to  Melville  Island. 

"The  best  application  of  steam  to  ice-going  vesselt 
would  be  Ericson's  screw ;  but  the  screw  or  paddles  of 
any  of  our  moderate-sized  vessels  might  be  made  t( 
%levate  with  facility.  Vessels  so  fitted  would  not  re- 
quire to  be  4>pUfied  in  an  extraordinary  degree,  not 
more  than  coB^itOli,  whalers.  From  the  log-like  quies* 
cence  with  which  4'  sailing  vessel  must  await  the  crush 
of  two  approaching  floes,  they  must  be  as  strong  m 


»■  0ISSX0N8  ASD  SUOOEBTIONt^ 


Sft6 


wood  Itud  iron  can  make  them ;  but  the  steamer  slipi 
out  of  the  reach  of  the  colliBion,  waits  till  the  shock  is 
past,  and  then  profiting  by  their  mutual  recoil,  darts 
at  once  through  the  transient  opening. 

"•  Two  such  vessels,  and  each  of  mem  attended  by 
two  tenders  laden  widi  c^als  and  provisions,  would  he 
sufficient  for  the  main  lines  of  search.  Every  promi- 
nent point  of  land  where  notices  might  have  been  left, 
woula  be  visited,  details  of  their  own  proceedings  would 
be  deposited,  and  each  of  thf» '  iders  woiQd  be  left  in 
proper  positions,  as  poir-  oi  .  dezvous  on  wh  <  'i  a> 
tall  Dack. 

^^  Besides  these  two  branches  of  the  expedition,  it 
would  be  well  to  allow  the  whaling  captain  (Penny,)  to 
carry  out  his  proposed  undertaking.  His  local  knowl- 
edge, his  thorough  acquaintance  with  all  the  mysteries 
of  the  ice  navigation,  and  his  well  known  slull  .and 
resources,  seem'  to  point  him  out  as  a  most  valuable 
auxiliary. 

'^  But  whatever  vessels  mav  be  chosen  for  this  s^r\'ice, 
I  would  beseech  their  lordsnips  to  expedite  them ;  all 
our  attempts  have  been  defended  too  long ;  and  there  is 
now  reason  to  believe  that  very  early  in  the  season,  in 
May  or  even  in  April,  Baffin's  Bay  may  be  crossed  be- 
fore the  accumulated  ice  of  winter  spreads  over  its 
surface.  If  they  arrive  rather  too  soon,  they  may  very 
advantageously  await  the  proper  moment  in  some  of 
the  Greenland  harbors,  preparing  themselves  for  the 
coining  efforts  and  struggles,  and  procuring  Esquimaux 
interpreters.  * 

"  In  order  to  press  every  resource  into  the  service  of 
this  noble  entei-prise,  the  vessels  should  be  extensively 
fdrnished  with  means  for  blasting  and  splitting  the  ice, 
perhaps  circular  saws  might  be  adapted  to  the  steamers, 
a  launch  to  each  party,  with  a  small  rotary  engine,^ 
sledges  for  the  shore,  and  light  boats  with  sledge  bear-' 
ings  for  broken  ice-fields,  balloons  for  the  distribution 
of  advertisements,  and  kites  for  the  explosion  of  lofty 
fire-balls.  And,  lastly,  they  should  have  vigorous  and 
Dume^oUEi  Qrew^  so  tb^t  when  detachments  are  away, 


250 


PKOOltBlfl  OF  ABCnO  DISOOTBRT. 


Other  operations  should  not  be  intermitted  for  want  of 
physical  strength. 

**  As  the  council  of  the  Roval  Society,  some  time  ago, 
thought  proper  to  i:emind  their  lordships  of  the  propriety 
of  instituting  this  search,  it  would  be  tair  now  to  call  on 
that  learned  body  for  all  the  advice  and  suggestions, 
that  science  and  philosophy  can  contribute  toward  the 
accomplishment  of  the  great  object  on  which  the  eyes 
of  all  JSn^land  and  indeed  of  all  the  world,  are  now 
entirely  fixed." 

Captain  Beechey,  writing  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Ad- 
miralty, 7th  of  February,  1860,  says : — 

"  The  urgent  nature  of  the  case  alone  can  justify  the 
use  of  ordinary  steamers  in  an  icy  sea,  and  great  pni- 
dence  and  judgment  will  be  required  on  the  part  of 
their  commanders,  to  avoid  being  disabled  by  collision 
and  pressure. 

"I  would  also  add,  as  an  exception,  that  I  thin"k  liCo- 
pold  Island  and  Cape  Walker,  if  possible,  should  both 
be  examined,  prior  to  any  attempt  being  made  to  pene- 
trate in  other  directions  from  Barrow's  Strait,  and  that 
the  bottom  of  Regent  Inlet,  about  the  Pelly  Islands, 
should  not  be  lef);  unexamined.  In  the  memorandum 
submitted  to  their  lordships  on  the  17th  of  January, 
1849,  this  quarter  was  considered  of  importance ;  and 
I  am  still  ot  opinion,  that,  had  Sir  John  Franklin  aban- 
doned his  vessels  near  the  coast  of  America,  and  much 
short  of  the  Mackenzie  River,  he  would  have  preferred 
the  probability  of  retaining  the  use  of  his  boats  ufitil 
he  found  relief  in  Barrow's  Strait,  to  risking  an  over- 
land joumej  via  the  before-mentioned  river;  it  must 
be  remembered,  that  at  the  time  he  sailed.  Sir  George 
Back's  discovery  had  rendered  it  very  probable  that 
Boothia  was  an  island. 
^  "  An  objection  to  the  necessity  of  this  search  seenis^ 
to  be,  that  had  Sir  John  Franklin  taken  that  route,  he* 
would  have  reached  Fury  Beach  already.  However,  I 
cannot  but  think  there  will  yet  be  found  some  good 
ffronnds  for  the  Esquimaux  sketch,  and  that  their  mean- 
ing has  been  misunderstood ;  and  as  Mr.  M'Cormick  is 


OPINIONS  OF  ARCrro  ^OTAGEBtf. 


257 


an  eiitci7>Hsing  person,  whose  name  has  already  been 
before  their  lorcfships,  I  would  submit,  whether  a  boat 
expedition  from  I^opold  Depot,  under  his  direction, 
would  not  satisfactorily  set  at  rest  all  inquiry  upon  this, 
now  the  only  quarter  unprovided  for." 

Captain  iSr  W.  E.  Parry  states  : — 

"I  am  decidedly  of  opinion  that  the  main  search 
Bhoaiu  ce  renewed  in  the  direction  of  Melyille  Island 
and  Banks'  Land,  including  as  a  part  of  the  plan  the 
thorough  examination  of  Wellington  Strait  and  of  the 
other  similar  openings  between  the  islands  of  the  group 
bearing  m^  name.  I  entertain  a  Rowing  conviction  of 
the  probabilitjr  of  the  missing  ships,  or  at  least  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  the  crews,  being  shut  up  at  Mel 
ville  Island,  Banks'  Land,  or  in  tnat  neighborhood, 
agreeing  as  I  do  with  Rear  Admiral  Sir  Francis  Beau- 
fort, in  his  report  read  yesterday  to  the  Board  that '  Sir 
John  Franklin  is  not  a  man  to  treat  his  orders  with 
levity,'  which  he  would  be  justly  chargeable  with  doing 
if  he  attached  greater  weight  to  any  notions  he  might 
personally  entertain  than  to  the  Admiralty  instructions, 
which  he  well  knew  to  be  founded  on  the  experience  of 
former  attempts,  and  on  the  best  information  which 
could  then  be  obtained  on  the  subject.  For  these  rea- 
sons I  can  scarcely  doubt  that  he  would  employ  at  least 
two  seasons,  those  of  1845  and  1846,  in  an  unremitting 
attempt  to  penetrate  directly  westward  or  southwestwara 
to  Behring's  Strait. 

"Supposing  this  conjecture  to  be  correct,  nothing  can 
be  morS  likely  than  that  Sir  John  Franklin's  ships,  hav- 
ing penetrated  in  seasons  of  ordinary  temperature  a 
considerable  distance  in  that  direction,  nave  been  locked 
up  by  successive  seasons  of  extraordinary  rigor,  thus 
baffling  the  efforts  of  their  weakened  crews  to  escape 
from  the  ice  in  either  of  the  two  directidhs  by  Behring's 
or  Barrow's  Straits. 

"  And  here  I  cannot  but  add,  that  my  own  conviction 
of  this  probability — for  it  is  only  with  probabilities 
that  we  have  to  deal — has  been  gi*eatly  strengthened 
hy  a  letter  I  have  lately  received  from  Col.  Sabine,  of 


KS 


PBOORB0S  OF   ASCnO   DISCOVEBT. 


the  Boyal  Artillery^  of  which  I  had  the  honor  to  snb 
mit  a  copj  to  Sir  Francis  Baring.  Colonel  Sabino 
ba'  '.:g  accompanied  two  successive  expeditions  to  Bat- 
fin's  Say,  inc«udinff  that  under  mv  command  which 
reached  Melville  Island,  I  consider  his  views  to  be  well 
worthy  of  their  lordships'  attention  on  this  part  of  the 
subject. 

^Xt  must  be  admitted,  however,  tliat  considerable 
weight  is  dv:^  to  the  conjecture  which  has*  been  offered 
by  persons  capable  of  ^rming  a  sound  judgment,  that 
havmg  failed,  as  I  did,  in  the  attempt  to  penetrate  west- 
ward. Sir  John  Franklin  mi^ht  deem  it  {>rudent  to  re- 
trace his  (Steps,  and  was  enabled  to  do  so,  in  order  to  try 
a  more  northern  route,  either  through  Wellington  Strait 
or  some  other  of  those  openings  oetween  the  Parry 
Islands  to  which  I  have  already  referred.  And  thisidea 
receives  no  small  importance  from  the  fact,  (said  to  be 
beyond  a  doubt,)  of  Sir  John  Franklin  having,  before 
his  departure,  expressed  such  an  intention  in  case  of 
failing  to  the  westward. 

"  I  cannot,  therefore,  consider  the  intended  search  to 
be  complete  without  making  the  examination  of  Wel- 
lington Strait  and  its  adjacent  openings  a  distinct  part 
of  the  plan,  to  be  performed  by  one  portion  of  the 
vessels  which  I  shaU  presently  propose  for  the  main 

.  expedition. 

^'  Much  stress  has  likewise  been  laid,  and  I  think  not 
altogether  without  reason,  on  the  propriety  of  search- 
ing Jones'  and  Smith's  Sounds  in  the  northwest  parts  of 
Baffin's  Bay.  Considerable  interest  has  lately- been  at- 
tached to  Jones'  Sound,  from  the  fact  of  its  having  been 
recently  navigated  by  at  least  one  enterprising  whaler, 
and  found  to  be  of  great  width,  free  from  ice,  with  a 
8  veil  from  the  westward,  and  having  no  land  visible  from 
the  mast-head  tin  that  direction.    It  seems  more  than 

iprobable,  therefore,  that  it  may  be  found  to  communi- 

.  cate  with  Wellington  Strait ;  so  that  if  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin's ships  have  been  detained  anywhere  to  the  north- 
ward of  the  Parry  Islands,  it  would  be  by  Jones'  Sound 

Ihat.he  would  probably  endeavor  to  effect  his  escape, 


OFINIOJ^S  AlfD  BUGGJ^TIOMk. 


^9 


rather  than  by  the  less  direct  route  of  Barrow^s  Strait. 
I  do  not  mvself  attach  much  importance  to  the  idea  of 
Sir  John  Franklin  having  so  far  retraced  his  steps  as 
to  come  back  through  Lancaster  Sound,  and  recom- 
mence his^  enterprise  by  entering  Jones'  Sound  ;  but 
the  possibility  ot  his  attempting  his  escape  through 
this  fine  opening,  and  the  report,  (though  somewhat 
vague,)  of  a  cairn  of  stones  seen  by  one  of  the  whalers 
on  a  headland  within  it,  seems  to  me  to  render  it  highly 
expedient  to  set  this  que8tii||k  at  rest  by  a  sear^  in 
tks  direction,  including  the  examination  of  Smith's 
Sound  ako." 

I    I  bee  to  cite  next  an  extract  from  the  letter  of  Dr.  Sir 
John  Hichardsoi^to  the  Secretary  of  the  Admiralty  : — 

^^Hailar  Hbapital,  Goaport,  7th  ofFehruary^  1860. 

"  With  respect  to  tJie  direction  in  which  a  successful 
search  may  oe  predicated  with  the  most  confidence, 
very  various  opinions  have  been  put  forth ;  some  have 
supposed  either  that  the  ships  were  lost  before  reaching 
Lancaster  Sound,  or  that  Sir  John  Franklin,  finding  an 
impassable  barrier  of  ice  in  the  entrance  of  Lancaster 
Sound,  may  have  Bought  for  a  passage  through  Jones' 
Sound.  I  do  not  feel  inclined  to  ^ve  much  weight  to 
either  conjecture.  When  we  consider  the  stren^  of 
the  Erebus  and  Terror,  calculated  to  resist  the  strongest 
pressure  to  which  ships  navigating  Baffin's  Bav  have 
been  known  to  be  subiect,  in  conjunction  with  the  fact 
that,  of  the  many  whalers  which  nave  been  crushed  or 
abandoned  since  the  commencement  of  the  fishery,  the 
crews,  or  at  least  the  greater  part  of  them,  have,  in 
almost  every  case,  succeeded  in  reaching  other  ships,  or 
fbe  Danish  settlements,  we  cannot  believe  that  the  two 
discovery  ships,  which  were  seen  on  ffee  edge  of  the 
middle  ice  so  early  as  the  26th  of  July,  can  have  been 
60  suddenly  and  totally  overwhelmed  as  to  ^preclude 
some  one  of  the  intelligent  ofilcers,  whose  minds  were 
prepared  for  every  emergency,  with  their  select  crews 
of  men,  experienced  in  tne  ice,  from  placing  a  boat  on 
the  ico  or  water,  and  thus  carrying  intelligence  of  the 


960 


PROOBESS  OF  ABOnO  DISOOYEBY. 


;'drBa8ter  to  one  of  the  many  whalers  which  remained  for 

^  two  months  after  that  date  in  those  seas,  and  this  in  the 

*^iihscnco  of  any  nnusual  catastrophe  among  the  fishing 

*  Tcssels  that  season. 

^  "  "With  respect  to  Jones'  Sonnd,  it  is  admitted  hy  all 
who  are  intimately  acquainted  with  Sir  John  Franklin^ 

'  that  his  first  endeavor  would  be  to  act  up  to  the  letter 
of  his  instructions,  and  that  therefore  he  would  not 
lightly  abandon  the  at^apt  to  pass  Lancaster  Sound. 

'  From  the  logs  of  the  WWlers  year  after  year,  we  learn 
that  when  once  they  have  succeeded  in  ronnding  'the 
middle  ice,  they  enter  Lancaster  Sound  with  facility  ; 
had  Sir  John  Franklin,  then,  gained  that  Sound,  and 
from  the  premises  we  appear  to  b»  ftilly  justified  in 
iX)ncluding  that  he  did  so,  and  had  he  afterward ,  en- 
countered a  compact  field  of  ice,  barring  Barrbv^'s 
Strait  and  Wellington  Sound,  he  would  then,  after  be- 
ing convinced  that  he  would  lose  the  season  in  attempt 
ing  to  bore  through  it,  have  borne  up  for  Jones'  Sound, 
but  not  until  he  had  erected  a  conspicuous  landmark, 
and  lodged  a  memorandum  of  his  rei^non  for  deviating 
from  his  instructions. 

*'The  absence  of  such  a  signal-post  in  Lancaster 
Sound  is  an  argument  against  the  expedition  having 
tunied  back  from  thence,  and  is,  on  the  other  hand,  a 
strong  support  to  the  suspicion  that  Barrow's  Strait  was 
as  open  in  1846  as  when  Sir  "W.  E.  Parry  first  passed 
it  in  1819  ;  that,  such  beine;  the  case.  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin, without  delay  and  witnout  landing,  pushed  on  to 
Cape  Walker,  and  that,  subsequently,  in  endeavoring 
to  penetrate  to  the  southwest,  he  became  involved  in 
the  drift  ice,  which,  there  is  reason  to  believe,  urged 
by  the  prevaiMng  winds  and  the  set  of  the  flood  tides, 
is  carried  towam  Coronation  Gulf,  through  channels 
more  or  less  intricate.  Should  he  have  found  no  open- 
ing al^Dape  Walker,  he  would,  of  course,  have  sought 
one  ftii#ier  to  the  west ;  or,  finding  the  southerly  and 
Westerly  opening  blocked  by  ice,  he  might  have  tried  a 
northern  passage. 
^'  Jn  either  case,  the  plan  of  search  propounded  by 


OPINION!   Ayn  BUGOESnONS. 


"•61 


6ir  Francis  JBoaufort  aeems  to  provide  against  everr 
contingency,  especially  when  taken  in  conjunction  with 
Captain  Collinson's  expedition,  via  Behring's  Strait, 
and  the  boat  parties  from  the  Mackenzie. 

^^  I  do  not  venture  to  offer  an  opinion  on  the  strength 
or  equipment  of  the  vessels  to  be  employed,  or  other 
merely  nautical  questions,  ftirther  than  by  remarking, 
that  the  use  of  the  small  vessels,  which  forms  part  of 


ing  Icy  Gape  and  Point  Barrow,  in  the  Nancy  Daweon 
yacht 

"  And  further,  with  respect  to  the  comparative  merits 
of  the  paddles  and  screw  in  the  arctic  seas,  I  beg  leave 
merely  to  observe,  that  as  long  as  the  screw  is  immersed 
in  water  it  will  continue  to  act,  irrespective  of  the  tern 
perature  of  the  air ;  but  when,  as  occurs  late  in  the 
autumn,  the  atmosphere  is  suddenly  cooled  below  the 
freezing  point  of  sea  water,  by  a  northerly  gale,  while 
the  sea  itself  remains  warmer,  the  paddles  will  be 
speedily  clogged  bv  ice  accumulating  on  the  floats  as 
tney  rise  through  tne  air  in  every  revolution.  An  in- 
cident recorded  by  Sii^  James  0.  Koss,  furnishes  a  strik- 
ing illustration  of  the  powerful  action  of  a  cold  wind  ; 
I  allude  to  a  fish  having  been  thrown  up  by  the  spray 
against  the  bows  of  the  Terror,  and  firmly  frozen  there, 
during  a  gale  in  a  high  southerly  latitude.  Moreover, 
even  with  the  aid  of  a  ready  contrivance  for  topping 
the  paddles,  the  flatness  or  hollowness  of  the  si^f^s  of  a 
paddle  steamer  renders  her  less  fit  for  sustainii'^r  , /res- 
sure  ;  the  machinery  is  more  in  the  way  of  oblique 
beams  for  strengthening,  and  she  is  les8|efficient  as  a 
sailing  vessel  wnen  the  steam  is  let  oE" 

^Memorandum  inclosed  in  J)r,  WCoHi^'k^tfilliUer 
of  the  lat  of  January ^IS^O. 

^  In  the  month  of  April  last,  I  laid  before  my  Lords 
Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty  a  plan  of  search  for 
the  missing  expedition  under  the  conimand  of  (JaptaiQ 


4^f* 


d^ 


PliOOEESS   OF  ARCTIO  DISCOVERT. 


% 


Sir  John  Franklin,  by  means  of  a  boat  expedition  up 
Jones'  and  Smith's  Sounds,  volunteering  myself  to 
conduct  it. 

^^  In  that  plan  I  stated  the  reascms  which  had  induced 
mo  to  direct  my  attention  more  especially  to  the  open- 
ings at  the  head  of  Baffin's  Bay,  which,  at  the  time 
were  not  included  within  the  general  scheme  of  search. 

"Wellington  Channel,  however,  of  all  th^  probable 
openings  into  the  Pol^^ea,  possesses  the  wghe^it  de- 
gree of  interest,  andnP^  exploration  of  it  is  of  jpch 
paramount  importance,  that  I  should  most  unq]aei?non 
ably  bave  comprised  it  within  my  plan  of  search,  had 
not  Her  Majesty's  ships  Enterprise  and  Investigator 
been  employed  at  the  time  in  Barrow's  Strait  for  the 
express  purpose  of  examining  this  inlet  and  Cape 
Walker,  two  of  the  most  essential  points  of  search  in 
the  whole  track  of  the  Erebus  and  Terror  to  the  west- 
ward ;  being  those  points  at  the  very  threshold  of  his 
enterprise,  from  which  Sir  John  iFranklin  would  take 
his  departure  fi*om  the  known  to  the  unknown,  whether 
he  shaped  a  southwesterly  course  from  the  latter,  or 
attempted  the  pas6a(i;e  in  a  highei  latitude  firom  the 
former  point. 

"  The  return  of  the  sea  expedition  from  Port  Leo- 
pold, and  the  overland  one  from  the  Mackenzie  Eiver, 
both  alike  unsuccessful  in  their  search,  leaves  the  fate 
of  the  gallant  Franklin  and  his  companions  as  proble- 
matical as  ever;  in  fact,' the  case  stands  precisely  as  it 
did  two  years  ago ;  the  work  is  yet  to  beoegun ;  every 
thing  remains  to  be  accomplished. 

"  In  renewal  of  the  search  in  the  ensuing  spring, 
more  would  be  accomplished  in  boats  than  in  any  o*hei 
way,  not  onli  by  Behring's  Strait,  but  from  the  east- 
ward. For  the  difficulties  attendant  on  icy  navigation 
which  Jj^rm  so  itiinperable  a  barrier  to  the  progress  of 
8hip9^Phil^:^e  reaaily  surmounted  by  boats ;  by  means 
of  which  the  coast  line  maybe  closely  examined  for 
oairns  of  stones,  under  which  Sir  John  Franklin  would 
most  indubitably  deposit  memorials  of  his  progress 
^P  all  prominent  positions,  as  opportunities  might  offer. 


4. 


mJFmionB  Aii^  sugobstionb. 


# 


* 


''The  disc(wery  of  one  of  these  mementlis  would,  In 
ai  probability,  anord  a  clue  that  might  lead  to  the  res- 
cue of  our  enterprising  countrymen,  ere  another  and 
sixth  winter  close  in  upon  them,  should  they  be  still 
in  existence ;  and  the  time  has  not  yet  arrived  for  aban- 
doning hope. 

''In  renewing  once  more  the  ofOsr  of  my  services, 
which  I  d  most  cheerfully,  I  see  no  reason  for  chang- 
ing the  opinions  I  entertainedyAst  spring ;  subsequent 
eiglts  have  only  tended  to  ^inrm  them.  I  then  be- 
lilKd,  and  I  do  so  still,  after  a  long  and  mature  con- 
sideration of  the  subject,  that  Sir  John  Franklin's  ships 
have  been  arrested  in  a  high  latitude,  and  beset  in  the 
he&Yy  polar  ice  northward  of  l^e  Parry  Islands,  and 
tl^at  their  probable  course  thither  has  been  through  the 
WelQiigton  Channel,  or  one  of  the  sounds  at  the  north- 
orii  #f  tremity  of  Baffin's  Bay. 

%^s  appeal's  to  me  to  be  the  only  view  of  the  case 
tiiaf  can  in  any  w&y  account  for  the  entire  absence  of 
all  tidings  of  them  throughout  so  protracted  a  period 
of  time  Unless  all  have  perished  by  some  sudden  and 
overwhelming  catastrophe.) 

"Isolated  as  their  position  would  be  under  such 
cumstances,  any  attempt  to  reach  the  continent 
America  at  such  a  distance  would  be  hopeless  ^  in 
extreme :  and  thB  mere  chance  of  any  party  from 
ships  reaching  the  top  of  Baffin's  Bay  at  the  very 
ment  of  a  whaler's  brief  and  uncertain  visit  wo  ~ 
attended  with  by  far  too  great  a  risk  to  iustify 
tempt,  for  failure  would  insure  inevitable  desmction 
to  the  whole  party;  therefore  their  only  alternative 
"Would  be  to  keep  together  in  their  ships,  snoula  no  dis- 
aster have  happened  to  them,  and  by  ntlsban^g  their 
remaining  resources,  eke  them  out  with  whatever  wild 
animals  may  cdme  within  their  reach,      i?  ^  ^^      r> 

"  Had  Sir  John  FranWin  Ijfeenable  to  rfiape  Wbuth- 
westerly  course  from  Cape  "Walker,  as  directed  by  his 
instructions,  the  probability  is,  some  Intelligeiice  of 
him  would  have  reached  tlik  country  ere  this,  (nearly 
five  years  having  already  elapsed  i^nce  his  departure 


cir 


e 


e 


m 


PROORESS  OF  iBOriO  DI800VERY.      \ 


from  it.)   "Parties  would  have  been  sent  out  from  his 
ships,  either  in  the  direction  of  the  coast  of  America 
or  Barrow's  Strait,  whichever  happened  to  be  the  nio8%  J 
accesisible.    Esquimaux  would  have  been  fallen  in      ' 
with,  and  tidings  of  the  long-absent  expedition  have 
kbeen  obtained. 

'  "Failing  in  penetrating  beyond  Cape  Walker,  Sir 
John  FraiS^lin  would  have  left  some  notice  of  his  fu- 
ture intentions  on  th||L8T>ot,  or  the  nearesi  accessible 
one  to  it ;  and  shoul<fflrtnen  retirace  his  course.^the 
"Wellington  Channel,  the  most  probable  conject«w,  be 
would  not  pass  up  that  inlet  without  depositing  a  fur- 
ther account  of  his  proceedings,  either  on  the  westerD 
or  eastei^  point  of  the  entrance  to  it. 

"Therefore,  should  my  proposal  meet  with4 their 
Lordships'  approbation,  I  would  most  respectfttUy  sub- 
mit, that  the  party  I  have  volunteered  to  .f^^duct 
should  be  landed  at  the  entrance  to  tHe  WeloiEigton 
Channel,  or  the  nearest  point  attainable  by  an^  ship 
that  their  Lordships  may  deem  fit  to  employ  in  a  fu- 
ture search,  consistently  with  any  other  services  that 
ship  may  have  to  perform ;  and  should  a  landing  be 
effected  on  the  eastern  side,  I  would  propose  commenc-. 
^ng  the  search  from  Cape  Biley  or  Beechey  Island  in 

northerly  direction,  carefdlly  examining  every  re- 
(arkable  headland  and  indentation  of  the  western 

1st  of  Korth  Devon  for  memorials  of  the  missing  ex- 

PI.  ""    "  "  "    - 

CHnnel  and  continae  the  search  alonff  the  northern  o 

8hom)f  Comwallis  Island,  extending  me  exploration 
to  the  westward  as  fSar  as  the  remaining  portion  of  the 
«easonWould  permit,  so  as  to  secure  the  retreat  of  the 
jparty  mfor6  the  winter  set  in,  returning  either  by  the 
dastem  6r  western  side  of  Comwallis  Island,  as  cir- 
cumstances might  itidijsiite  to  be  the  most  ^desirable  at 
the^Hine,  aiter  asc^rta^iing  the  general  extent  and 
trending  of  the  shores  6f  that  island. 

"  As,  however,  it  WouM  be  hijghly  desirable  that 
Jones'  Sound  should  not  be  omitted  in  the  search,  more 
especially  as  a  whalc'r,  last  season,  reached  its  entrance 


.    ¥ 


■%, 


\    : 


,T^K3P^ 


» 

^ 


mfunjnotiM  and  bttogbkiokb. 


^5 


§M  reported  it  open,  I  would  furtner  propose,  that  the 
jghip  conveying  the  exploring  party  ont  should  look  ii^o 
'}us  opening  on  her  way  to  Lancaster  Sound,  if  circum- 
jtances  permitted  of  her  doing  so  early  in  the  season  ; 
and,  if  ibund  to  be  free  from  ice,  the  attempt  might  be 
;iJDBade  by  the  boat  expedition  to  push  through  it  to  the  «^ 
westward  in  this  latitude;  and  should  it  prove  to  be 
an  opening  into  the  Polar  Sea,  of  which  I  think  there 
can  be  litUe  doubt,  a  ereat  saymj^  of  time  and  distance 
wo^  bo  accomplishea.  Failii^^  this,  the  ship  should 
be^i^^  in  some  central  position  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  Wellington  Channel,  as  apoint  d^apj>m  to  fall  back 
upon  in  the  search  from  that  quarter. 

J.  ^  (Signed,)  R.  M'Gobhick,  R.  N. 

^^^iokenham,  lat  of  January j  1850." 


iqf  a  Plan  of  an  Overland  Journey  to  the 
r  8ea^  hy  the  Way  of  the^  Coppermine  River ^ 
Search  of  Sir  John  FranldvrCa  Expedititm^  augr 
geated  in  1847. 

"  If  Sir  John  Franklin,  guided  by  his  instructions, 
has  passed  through  Barrow's  Strait,  and  shaped  a  south- 
westerly course,  from  the  meridian  of  Cape  "Walker, 
with  the  intention  of  gaining  the  northern  coast  of  the 
.continent  of  America,  and  so  passing  through  the  Dol- 
phin and  Union  Strait,  along  the  shore  of  that  conti- 
nent, to  Behring's  Strait; 

..  ^'  His  greatest  risk  of  detention  by  the  ice  through- 
out this  coursQ  would  be  found  between  the  parallels  of 
74?  and  69°  north  latitude,  and  the  meridians  ©f  100° 
and  110°  west  longitude,  or,  in  other  words,  that  por- 
tion of  the  northwest  passage  which  yet  remains  unex- 
plored,-occupying  the  space  between  the  western  coast 
of  Boothia  on  the  one  side,  and  the  island  or  islands 
forming  Banks'  and  Victoria  ]p5:id6  on  the  other. 

"  Should  the  Erebus  aa^^T^ror  have  been  beset  in 
the  heavy  drift-ice,  or  wreicked  among  it  and  the  bro- 
ken landj^hich  in  all  probability  exists  there  while 
contending  with  the  prevalent  westerly  winds  in  this 
quarter;  .  , 


,■*. 


PBOOitUSS  OF  AROTIO  ZHBCOYEBY. 


-^ 


j»,    "The  Clopperinine  Kiver  would  decidedly offei^the 
tiinost  direct  route  and  nearest  approach  to  that  portion 
5f  the  Polar  Sea,  and,  after  crossine  Coronation  Oidik 
;>  the  average  breadth  of  the  StrfUt  oetween  the  Conip' 
I  nent  and  Victoria  Land  is  only  about  twenty-two  miles/ 
''From  this  point  a  careful  search  should  be  coi# 
menced  in  the  airection  of  Banks'  Land  ;  the  interveD-t 
ing  space  between  it  and  Victoria  Land,  occupying 


^4ibout  five  degrees,  <^ttle  more  than  300  miles,  could, 
I^^I  think,  bcaccompliflld  in  onJB  season,  and  a  i^jj^i 
^winter  quarters  effected  before  the  winter  set  4P  As 


tto 


^.  the  ice  m  the  Coppermine  River  breaks  up  in  June, 
the  searching  party  ought  to  reach  the  sea  by  the  be- 
ginning of  August,  which  would  leave  two  ol  tfcie  best 
months  of  the  year  for  exploring  the  Polar  " 
August  and  September. 

"  As  it  would  be  highly  desirable  that  everyj 
day,  to  the  latest  period  of  the  season,  shoi " 
voted  to  the  search,  I  should  propose  winterifi|^ 
coast  in  the  vidnity  of  the  moutn  of  the  Coppermine 
River,  which  would  also  afford  a  favorable  position 
from  which  to  recommence  the  search  in  the  following 
spring,  should  th^  first  season  prove  unsuccessful. 

^^  Of  course  the  object  of  such  an  expedition  as  I  have 
proposed  is  not  with  the  view  of  taking  supplies  to  sucb 
a  numerous  party  as  Sir  John  Pranklin  has  under  his 
command  ;  but  to  find  out  his  position,  and  acquaint 
him  where  a  depot  of  provisicms  would  be  stored  up 
for  himself  and  crews  at  my  proposed  winter  quarters^^^ 
where  a  party  should  be  left  to  build  a  house,  establish 
a  fishery,  and  hunt  for  game,  during  the  absence  ofthe 
searching  party. 

"  To  carry  out  this  plan  efficiently,  the  Hudson's  Bay 
'Company  should  be  requested  to  lend  their  powerful 
cooperation  in  furnishing  guides,  supplies  pf  pemmican, 
«&c.,  for  the  party  on  t&r  route  ana  at  winter  quarters. 
Without  entering  into  det&il§  here,  I  may  observe,  that 
I  should  consider  one  boat^  combining  the  necessary 
requisites  in  her  construction  to  fit  her  for' either  the 
(iver  navig^on,  or  that  oi  tk%  ^^ores  of  the  Polar  Sea, 


■"^^..s^ 


OPINIONS  AND  6UGonnnoN3. 


mi 


would  be  quite  sufficient,  with  a  crew  one  half  sailors, 
and  the  other  half  Canadian  boatmen  ;  the  latter  to  be 
engaged  at  Montreal,  for  which  place  I  would  propwe 
leaving  England  in  the  month  of  February. 

^'  Should  such  an  expedition  even  &il  in  its  main  ob< 
ject  —  the  discovery  ot  the  position  of  the  missing  ships 
and  their  crews,  i&  longnsought-for  polar  passage  may 
be  accomplished. 

(Signed,)  R.  M'Cowock,  R.  N. 

«  Woohoieh,  1847." 


Copy  of  a  Letter  from  Zieutenant  Shera/rd  Oehorn  to 
the  Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty.     . 

"  Ealing,  Middlesex,  ^h  January,  1850. 

^Tjjtt  Lords, —  A  second  attempt  to  reach  Sir  John 
Franklin's  expedition  being  about  to  be  tried  during 
the  pifesent  year,  I  take  the  liberty  of  calling  your  at- 
tention to  the  inclosed  proposition  for  anx>verrand  party 
to  be  dispatched  to  the  shores  of  the  Polar  Sea,  with  a 
yiew  to  their  traversing  the  short  distance  between  Cape 
Bathurst  and  Banks'  Land.  My  reasons  for  thus  tres- 
passing on  your  attention  are  as  follows  ; 

"  Ist.  General  opinion  places  the  lost  eirpedition  to 
the  west  of  Cape  Walker,  and  south  of  the  latitude  of 
Melville  Island. 

"  The  distance  from  Cape  Bathurst  to  Banks'  Land 
is  only  301  miles,  and  on  reference  to  a  chart  it  will  be 
Been  that  nowhere  else  does  the  Andean  continent 
approach  so  near  to  the  supposed  posim>n  of  Franklin's 
expedition. 

^'  2d.  As  a  starting  point.  Cape  Bathurst  offers  great 
advantages ;  the  arrival  of  a  party  sent  there  from 
England  may  be  calculated  upon  to  a  day ;  whereas 
the  arrival  of  Captain  Collirison  in  the  longitude  of 
Cape  Barrow,  or  tnat  of  an  eastern  expedition  in  Lan- 
caster Sound,  will  depend  upon  many  uncontrollable 
contingencies.    The  distance  to  be  performed  is  com- 

Earatively  little,  and  the  certainty  ot  being  able  to  fall 
ack  upon  supplies  offers  great  advantages.    Captain 
-  17  ,    ... 


m 


908 


PBOGREBS  01  ARCmO  DQGOTERY. 


5*-- 


Collinson  will  have  080  miles  of  longitude  to  travene 
between  Cape  Barrow  and  Banks'  Lan<i.  An  Eastern 
Expedition,  if  opposed  by  the  ice,  (as  Sir  James  Ross 
has  been,)  and  unable  to  proceed  in  their  vessels  farther 
than  Leopold  Haybor,  wul  have  to  journey  bn  foot  330 
miles  to  reach  ^  longitude  of  Banks'  Land,  and  jf 
any  accident  occUf  to  tneir  vessels,  th<^  will  be  in  as 
critical  a  positiopias  those  they  go  to  seek.  ' 

"  3d.  Banks'  lOind  bears  from  Cape  Bathm-st  X.  41° 
49'  E.  302  miles,  an(|«,there  is  reason  to  believe  that  in 
the  summer  season  a  portion  of  this  distance  n^  be 
traversed  in  boatSi, 

"  4th  and  5th.  Dr.  Richardson  confirms  previous  re- 
ports of  the  ice  being  light  on  the  coast  east  of  the 
Mackenzie  River  to  Cape  Bathurst,  uiid  informs  us 
that  the  Esquimaux  had  seen  no  ice  to  seaward  Ijpr  t /o 
moons.  ' 

"  6th..  Every  mile  traversed  northward  by  ft  party 
fi'om  Cape  BathurstiWould  be  over  that  unknown  space 
in  which  traces  of  Franklin  may  be  expected. 

'^  7th.  It  is  advis(kble  that  such  a  second  party  be 
dispatched  from  Cape  Bathurst,  in  order  that  the  pros- 
ecution of  Dr.  Rae's  examination  of  the  supposed  chan- 
nel between  Wollaston  and  Victoria  Lands  may. in  no 
way  be  interfered  with  by  his  attention  being  called  to 
the  westward. 

"8th.  The  caches  of  provisions  made  at  different 
points  of  the  Mackenzie  and  at  Cape  Bathurst,  would 
enable  a  party  to  push  down  to  their  starting  point  with 
great  celerity^irectly  the  River  Mackenzie  opens, 
which  may  be  as  early  as  May. 

f*I  would  also  remind  your  Lordships  that  the  pro- 
posed expedition  would  carry  into  execution  a  very  im- 
portant clause  in  the  instructions  ^iven  to  Sir  James 
Ross  ;  viz :  that  of  sending  exploring  parties  from 
Banks'  Land  in  a  southwest^lj  direction  toward  Cape 
Bathurst  or  Cape  Parry.     ^ 

"  Li  conclusion,  I, beg  to  c^|a;.  my  willing  services  to- 
ward tbe  execution  of  tne  prop|kpj)lan  ;  and  seeking 
it  from  no  selfish  motives,  but  ^£^pughly  impressed 


*^f 


'^OPINIONS  AKD  BUOGnfTtOSB* 


£09 


with  its  feasibility,  you  majr  rest  assured,  my  lords, 
should  I  have  the  Donor  of  being  sent  upon  this  service, 
that  I  shall  not  disappoint  your  expectations. 
^    "I  have,  &c., 
(SigM,)  ^^  Sherabd  Obbosn,  Lieut.,  R.  N.'' 


Cfcpy  of  a  Letter  from  Colonel  SMne,  B,  A.,  to  Cap- 
tain Sir  W.  Edward  P'a/rry, 

'^  Castle-down  Terrace,  MasUngtj 
,^  "  Uth  of  January  1850. 

"There  can  be  little  doubt, "  imagine,  in  the  miad  of 
any  one  who  has  read  attentively  Franklin's  instruc- 
tions, and,  (in  reference  to  them,)  ^our  description  of 
the  state  of  the  ice  and  of  the  navigable  water  in  1 A19 
and  1820,  in  the  rout«  which  he  was  ordered  to  pursue; 
still  less,  I  think,  can  there  be  a  doubt  in  the  mind  of 
any  one  who  had  the  advantage  of  being  with  you  in 
those  years,  that  Franklin,  (always  supposing  no  pre- 
vious disaster,)  must  have  made  his  way  to  the  south- 
west part  of  Melville  Island  either  in  1845  or  1846.  It 
has  been  said  that  1845  was  an  unfavorable  season,  and 
as  the  navigation  of  Davis'  Strait  and  Baffin's  Bay  was 
new  to  Franklin,  we  may  regard  it  as  more  probable 
that  it  may  have  taken  him  two  seasons  to  accomplish 
what  we  accomplished  in  one.  So  fiir,  I  think,  guided 
by  his  instructions  and  by  the  experience  gained  in 
1819  and  1820,  we  may  reckon  pretty  confidently  on 
the  first  stage  of  his  proceedings,  andjioubtless,  in  his 
progress  he  would  have  left  memorran  in  the  U:iual 
manner  at  places  where  he  may  have  landed,  some  of 
which  would  be  likely  to  fell  in  the  way  of  a  vessel  fol- 
lowing in  his  track.  From  the  west  end  of  Melville 
Island  our  inferences  as  to  his  further  proceedings  must 
become  more  conjectural,  being  contingent  on  &  state 
of  the  ice  and  the  existence  of  navigable  water  in  the 
particular  season.  If  he  found  the  ocean,  as  we  did, 
covered  to  the  west  and  south,  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach  from  the  summit  of  the  highest  hills,  with  ice  of 
a  thickness  unparalleled  in  any  other  part  of  the  Polai 


# 


mo 


PBOGB^  OF  ABOTIO  DISOOVBBT. 


Sea^  he  would,  after  probably  waiting  through  one  whole 
season  in  the  hope  of  some  tavorable  change,  have  re- 
traced his  Ateps,  m  obedience  to  the  second  part  of  his 
instructions,  in  ord*er  to  seek  an  opening  t^tho  north 
which  might  conduct  to  a  more  open  sea.  %  this  case 
some  memorial  of  the  season  passed  by  him  at  the 
southwest  end  of  Melville  Island,  and  also  of  his  pur 

{>ose  of  retracing  his  steps,  would  doubtless  have  been 
eft  by  him ;  ana  should  he  subsequently  have  found 
an  opening  to  the  north,  presenting  a  favorable  appear- 
ance, there  aliso,  should  circumstances  have  pernrtted, 
lirould  a  memonal  have  been  left. 

'^  lie  may,  however,  have  found  a  more  favorable 
state  of  things  at  the  southwest  end  of  Melville  Island 
than  we  did,  and  may  have  been  led  thereby  to  at- 
tempt to  force  a  passage  for  his  ships  in  the  dire^  \m 
of  Behring's  Strait,  or  perhaps,  in  the  first  instance,  to 
the  south  of  that  direction,  namely,  to  Banks'  Land 
In  such  case  two  contingencies  present  themselves' 
first,  that  in  the  season  of  navigation  of  1847  he  may 
have  made  so  much  progress,  that  in  1848  he  may  have 
preferred  the  endeavor  to  push  through  to  Behring's 
Strait,  or  to  some  western  part  of  the  continent,  to  an 
attempt  to  return  by  the  way  of  Barrow's  Strait;  the 
mission  of  the  Plover,  the  Enterprise,  and  the'Inves- 
tigatc»r  together  with  Dr.  Eae's  expedition,  supply,  1 
presume,  \  lor  I  am  but  partially  acquai  A  with  their 
m8tructions,ythe  moit  judicious  means  of  affording  re- 
lief in  this  dir^tion.  There  is,  however,  a  second  con- 
tingency ;  anMt  is  the  one  which  the  impression  left 
on  my  mind  by  the  nature  and  general  aspect  of  the 
ice  in  the  twelve  months  which  we  ourselves  passed  at 
the  southwest  end  of  Melville  Island,  compels  me,  in 
spite  of  my  wishes,  to  regard  as  the  more  probable, 
viz.,  that  his  advance  from  Melville  Island  in  the  sea- 
son of  1847  may  have  been  limited  to  a.  distance  of 
fifty,  or  perhaps  one  hundred  iA|iles  at  farthest,  and 
that  in  1848  he  may  have  endeilliFed  to  retrace  his 
steps,  but  only  with  partial  success.  "It  is,  I  apprehend, 
quite  a  conceivable  case,  that  under  these  circumstances. 


^^. 


OPlHION»  AND  lUGOlOBIiOlia. 


271 


ioeapable  of  extricatiug  the  Bhipt  from  the  ice,  thm 
crewd  may  have  been)  at  length,  obliged  to  qnit  them, 
aud  attempt  a  retreat,  not  toward  the  continent,  because 
too  distant,  but  to  Holyille  Island,  where  certainly 
food,  and  gpobably  fuel  (seals,)  might  be  obtained,  and 
where  they  would  naturally  suppose  that  vessels  dis- 
patched from  England  for  their  relief  would,  in  the 
tirst  instance,  seek  them.  It  is  quite  conceivable  also, 
I  apprehend,  that  the  circumstances  might  be  silch 
that  their,  retreat  may  have  been  made  without  their 
boats,  and  probably  in  the  April  or  May  of  1849.       :» 

^^  Where  the  Esquimaux  have  lived,  there  Englishmen 
may  live,  and  no  valid  argument  against  the  attempt 
to  relieve  can,  I  think,  be  founded  on  the  improbability 
of  finding  Englishmen  alive  in  1850,  who  may  have 
made  a  retreat  to  Melville  Island  in  the  spring  of  1849  ; 
nor  would  the  view  of  the  case  be  altered  in  any  ma- 
terial degree,  if  we  suppose  their  retreat  to  have  been 
made  in  1848  or  1849  to  Banks^  Land,  which  may 
afford  facilities  of  food  and  fuel  equal  or  superior  to 
Melville  Island,  and  a  further  retreat  in  the  following 
year  to  the  latter  island  as  the  point  at  which  they 
would  more  probably  look  out  for  succor. 

■^  Without  disparagement,  therefore,  to  the  attempts 
made  in  other  directions,  I  retain  my  original  opinion, 
which  seems  also  to  iiave  been  the  opinion  of  the 
Board  of  Admiralty,  by  which  Boss's  instructions  were 
drawn  up,  that  the  most  proniising  direction  for  re- 
search would  be  taken  by  a  vessel  which  should  follow 
them  to  the  southwest  point  of  Melvilla#Bland,  be  pre- 
pared to  winter  there,  and,  if  necessary,  to  send  a 
party  across  the  ice  in  April  or  May  to  examine  Banks' 
Land,  a  distance  (there  and  back|  less  than  recently 
accomplished  by  Boss  in  his  land  journey. 

'4  learn  from  Boss's  dispatchos,  that  almost  imme- 
diately after  he  got  out  of  rort  Leopold  (1849,)  he  was 
entangled  in  apparently  interminable  fields  and  floes 
of  ice,  with  which,  in  the  course  of  the  summer,  he 
was  drifted  down  through  Barrow's  Strait  and  Baffin's 
•^ay  neai:ly  to  Davis'  Strait.    Jt  ,ija  reasonable  \o  pre- 


*€► 


f^j 


27S 


FR0OBB9S  OF  ABOTIO   DIBOOyXBT. 


Bttme, 


therefore,  that  the  localities  fron  whence  thii 
ice  drifted  are  likely  to  be  less  encumbered  than  usual 
by  accumulated  ice  in  1860.  It  is.  of  course,  of  the 
highest  importance  to  reach  Barrow^s  Strait  at  the  ear- 
liest possible  period  of  the  season ;  and,  con^toted  with 
this  point  I  learn  from  Captain  Bird,  whom  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  here  a  lew  days  ago,  a  very  remark- 
able fact,  that  the  ice  which  prevented  their  crossing 
Baffin's  Bay  in  72°  or  73*»  of  latitude  (as  we  did  in 
1819,  arriving  in  Barrow's  Strait  a  month  earlier  than 
we  had  done  the  preceding  year,  when  we  went  round 
by  Melville  Bay,  and  nearly  a  month  earlier  than  Boss 
did  last  year)  was  young  ice,  which  had  formed  in  the 
remarkably  calm  summer  of  last  year,  and  which  the 
absence  of  wind  prevented  their  forcing  a  passage 
through,  on  the  one  hand,  while  on  the  other,  the  ice 
was  not  heavy  enough  for  ice  anchors.  It  was,  he  said, 
not  more  than  two  or  two  and  a  half  feet  thick,  and  ob- 
viously of  very  recent  formation.  There  must,  there- 
fore, liave  been  an  earlier  period  of  the  season  when 
this  part  of  the  sea  must  have  been  free  from  ice ;  and 
this  comes  in  confirmation  of  a  circumstance  of  which 
I  was  informed  by  Mr.  Petersen  (a  Danish  gentleman 
sent  to  England  some  months  ago  by  the  Northern  So- 
ciety of  Antiquaries  of  Copenhagen,  to  make  extracts 
irom  books  and  manuscripts  in  the  British  Musenm,) 
that  the  Northmen,  who  nad  settlements  some  centa- 
ries  ago  on  the  west  coast  of  Greenland;  were  in  the 
habit  of  crossing  Baffin's  Bay  in  the  latitude  of  Uper- 
navic  in  the  aprntg  of  the  year,  for  the  purpose  of  fish- 
ing in  Barrow's  Strait,  from  whence  they  returned  in 
August ;  and  that  in  the  early  months  they  generally 
found  the  passage  across  free  from  ice. 

"  In  the  preceding  remarks,  I  have  left  one  contin- 
gency unconsidered  ;  it  is  that  which  would  have  fol- 
lowed in  pursuance  of  his  instructions,  if  Fnmklin  should 
have  found  the  aspect  of  the  ice  too  unfavorable  to  the 
west  and  south  of  Melville  Island  to  attempt  to  force  a 
passage  through  it,  and  should  have  retraced  his  steps 
;n  hopes  of  finding  a  more  open  sea  to  the  northward, 


M 


OPINIONS  AND  BOOOBSTIONI.    «*1 


278 


wither  in  WelHIlK^on  Strait  or  elsewhere.  It  is  quite 
conceivable  that  here  also  the  expeditioa  may  hu^e  en- 
countered, at  no  very  g^at  distance,  insuperable  diffi- 
culties to  their  advance,  and  may  have  failed  in  accom- 
plishing a  retom  with  their  ships.  In  this  case,  the 
retreat  of  the  crews,  supposing  it  to  have  been  made 
acro88  land  or  ice,  would  most  probably  b^  directed  to 
6ome  part  of  the  coast  on  the  route  to  Melville  Island, 
on  which  route  they  would,  without  doubt,  expect  that 
succor  would  be  attempted."  * 

Mr.  Robert  A.  Goodsir,  a  brother  of  Mr.  H.  D.  C  >od- 
fiir,  the  assistant-surgeon  of  Sir  John  Franklin's-  ship, 
the  Erebus,  left  Stromness,  as  surgeon  of  the  Advice, 
whaler,  Capt.  Penny,  on  the  17th  of  March,  1849,  in 
the  hopes  of  gaining  some  tidings  of  his  brother  ;  but 
returned  unsuccessful  after  an  eight  months'  voyage. 
Ho  has,  however,  published  a  very  interesting  little 
narrative  of  the  icy  regions  and  of  his  Urctic  voyage. 

In  a  letter  to  Lady  Franklin,  dated  Edinburgh,  18th 
of  January,  1860,  he  says  : — ^**  I  trust  you  are  not  allow- 
ing yourself  to  become  over-anxious.  I  know  that, 
altnongh  there  is  much  cause  to  bo  so,  there  is  still  not 
the  slightest  reason  that  we  should  despair.  It  may  be 
presumptuous  in  me  to  say  so,  but  I  have  never  ior  a 
moment  doubted  as  to  their  ultimate  safe  return,  having 
always  had  a  sort  of  presentiment  that  I  would  meet  my 
brother  and  his  companions  somewhere  in  the  regions 
in  which  their  adventures  are  taking  place.  This  nope 
I  have  not  yet  given  up,  and  I  trust  tnat  by  next  sum- 
mer it  may  be  fulfilled,  when  an  end  will  be  put  to  the 
suspense  which  has  lasted  so  long,  and  which  must  have 
tried  you  so  much." 

The  arctic  regions,  far  from  being  so  destitute  of  ani- 
mal life  as  might  be  supposed  from  fhe  bleak  and  inhos- 
pitable character  of  the  climate,  are  proverbial  for  the 
boundless  profusion  of  various  species  of  the  animal 
kingdom,  which  are  to  be  met  with  in  different  locali- 
ties during  a  great  part  of  the  year. 

The  air  is  often  dark<=ined  by  innumerable  flocks  of 
arctic  and  blue  gulls,  {Lestris  Parasiticus,  and  Zarus 


274 


PBOOKISS  OF  ABCl'IO  DWOOYKRY, 


glauc^ia^  the  ivory  ffnll  or  gnow>bird,  (L^^t  efmrnei^x ' 
the  kittiwake,  the  fulmar  or  petrel,  snow  ffeeso,  tern:, 
coons,  dovekies,  &g.  The  cetaceous  animals  compriBo 
the  great  Greenland  whale.  {Balana  mytHoetus^)  the 
sea  unicorn  or  narwhal,  (Manodon  iMnuHkroa^)  the 
white  whale  or  beluga,  {Del^hinua  leuoos,)  the  morse 
or  walrus,  {T^oheova  roamarus,^  and  the  seal.  There 
are  also  plenty  of  porpoises  occasionally  to  be  met  with, 
and  although  these  animals  may  not  be  the  best  of  food, 
yet  they  can  be  eaten.  Of  the  land  animals  I  may  in- 
stance the  polar  bear,  tho  musk-ox,  the  reindeer,  the 
arctic  fox  and  wolves. 

Parry  obtained  nearly  40001b8.  weight  of  animal  food 
during  his  winter  resiaenoe  at  Melville  Island ;  Kosb 
nearly  the  same  quantity  from  birds  alone  when  wiuter- 
inff  at  Port  Leopold.  \ 

In  1719,  the  crews  of  two  Hudson's  Bay  vessels,  the 
Albany  and  Diftovery,  a  ship  and  sloop,  under  the 
command  of  Mr.  Barlow  and  Mr.  Knight,  were  cast  ou 
shore  on.  Marble  Island,  and  it  was  subse<]^uently  ascer- 
tained that  some  of  the  party  supported  life  for  nearly 
three  years.  Mr.  Heame  learned  the  particulars  from 
some  of  the  Esquimaux  an  1729.  The  ship  it  appeared 
went  on  shore  in  the  fall  of  1719 ;  the  party  being  then 
in  number  about  fifty,  began  to  build  their-  house  for 
the  winter.  As  soon  as  the  ice  permitted  in  the  follow- 
ing summer  the  Esquimaux  paid  them  another  visit,  and 
foimd  the  number  of  sailors  much  reduced,  and  very 
unhealthy. 

Sickness  and  'famine  occasioned  such  havoc  among 
them  that  by  the  setting  in  of  the  second  winter,  their 
number  was  reduced  to  twenty.  Some  of  the  Esqui- 
maux took  up  their  abode  at  this  period  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  harbor,  and  supplied  them  with  what  provis- 
ions they  could  spare  in  the  shape  of  blubber,  seal's 
flesh,  and  train  oil.  ^ 

The  Esquimaux  left  for  their  wanderings  in  the 
spring,  and  on  revisiting  the  Island  in  the  summer  of 
1y21,  only  five  of  the  crews  were  found  alive,  and  these 
were  so  ravenous  for  food,  that  they  devoured  the  blub- 


« 


ABUXIUKOS  OF   AlflMAL  FOOD  MIT  WITII.  97i 

i)er  and  tears  flmh  raw,  as  they  purchased  it  of  th« 
Dtttives,  which  proved  so  injnrions  in  their  weak  state, 
that  three  of  them  died  in  a  few  days.  The  two  snr* 
vivoFfl,  though  very  weak,  mana^^ed  to  biiry  their  cont-* 
rades,  and  protracted  their  existence  for  some  days 
longer. 

'^They  fivqnently,**  in  ^e  words  of  the  narrative, 
^went  to  the  top  of  an  adjacent  rock,  and  earnestly' 
looked  to  the  south  and  east,  as  if  in  expectation  of  som« 
vessels  coming  to  their  relief.  After  continuing  there 
a  considerob^  time,  and  nothing  appearing  in  sight, 
they  sat  down  close  together,  and  wept  bitterly.  At 
length  ono  of  the  two  died,  and  the  other's  strength  was 
Bo  far  exhausted,  that  he  fell  down  and  died  also  in 
attempting  to  dig  a  grave  for  his  companion.  The  skulls 
and  other  large  Done»  of  these  two  men  are  now  lying 
above  ground  close  to  the  house."       • 

Sir  John  Bichardson,  speaking  of  the  amount  of  food 
to  be  obtained  in  the  }>olar  region,  says,  *^Deer  mi^te 
over  the  ice  in  the  spring  from  the  main  shore  to  v  ic- 
toria  and  WoUaston  Lands  in  large  herds,  and  return  in 
the  autumn.  These  lands  are  also  the  breeding  places 
of  vast  flocks  of  snow  geese ;  so  that  with  ordinary 
skill  in  hunting,  a  large  supply  of  food  might  be  pro- 
cured on  their  shores.  In  the  months  of  June,  July,  and 
August.  Seals  are  also  numerous  in  those  seas,  and 
are  easily  shot,  their  curiublty  rendering  them  a  ready 
prey  to  a  boat  party."  In  these  ways  and  by  fishing, 
the  stock  of  provisions  might  be  greatly  augmented  — 
and  we  have  the  recent  examjue  of  Mr.  Bae,  who 
passed  a  severe  winter  on  the  very  barrel  shores  of 
Bepulse  Bay,  with  no  other  Aiel  than  the  withered  tufts 
of  a  herbaceous  andromada,  and  maintained  a  numer- 
ous party  on  the  spoils  of  the  chase  alone  for  a  whole 
year.  Such  instances,  forbid  us  to  lose  hope.  Should 
Sir  John  Franklin's  provisions  become  so  fer  inade- 
quate to  a  winter's  consumption,  it  is  not  likely  that  h« 
would  remain  longer  by  his  ships,  but  rather  that  in? 
one  body,  or  in  several,  the  oflBcers  and  crews,  with 
boats  (^down  so  as  to  be  light  enough  to  drag  over 


m 


PROGSESS  OF  AJKOTIC  DISC4  VEST.    vi. 

&e  ice,  or  built  expressly  for  that  purpose,  would  en* 
deavor  to  make  their  waj  eastward  to  Lancaster  Sound, 
or  southward  to  Uie  mainland,  according  to  the  longi- 
tude in  which  the  ships  were  arrested. 
'  We  ought  not  to  judge  of  the  supplies  of  food  that 
can  be  procured  in  the  arctic  regions  by  diligent  hunt- 
ing, from  the  quantities  that  have  been  actually  ob- 
tained on  the  several  expeditions  that  .have  returned, 
and  consequently  of  the  means  of  preserrinff  life  there. 
When  there  was  abundance  in  the  ships,  uie  address 
and  energy  of  the  hunting  parties  was  not  likely  to  be 
called  forth,  as  they  would  inevitably  be  when  the  exis- 
tence of  the  crews  depended  solely  on  their  personal 
efforts,  and  formed  their  chief  or  only  object  in  their 
march  toward  quarters  where  relief  might  bo  looked 
for.  This  remark  has  reference  t»  the  supposition  that 
on  the  failure  of  the  stock  of  provisions  in  the  ships, 
the  crews  would,  in  separate  parties  under  their  officers, 
seek  for  succor  in  several  directions. 

With  an  empty  stomach,  the  power  of  resisting  exter- 
nal cold  is  greauy  impaired ;  but  when  the  process  of 
digesting  is  going  on  vigorously,  even  with  compara- 
tively scanty  clothing,  the  heat  ot  t^^e  body  is  preserved. 
There  is  in  the  winter  time,  in  high  latitudes,  a  craving 
for  fat  or  oleaginous  food,  and  mr  such  occasions  the 
flesh  of  seals,  walruses,  or  bears,  forms  a  useful  article 
of  diet.  Oaptain  Cook  says  that  the  walrus  is  a  sweet 
and  wholesome  article  of  food.  Whales  and  seals  would 
also  furnish  light  and  fuel.  Hie  necessity  for  increased 
food  in  very  cold  weather,  is  not  so  great  when  the 
people  do  not  work. 

Mr.  Gilpin,  in  his  narrative  in  the  Nautical  Maga- 
zine for  March,  1860,  writes  thus  :  — 

"About  the  20th  of  June  a  small  water  bird,  called 
the  doveky,  had  become  so  numerous,  and  so  many 
were  daily  shot  by  those  who  troubled  themselves  to  go 
after  them,  that  shooting  parties  from  each  ship,  con- 
sisting of  an  officer  and  marine,  were  established  a< 
Whaler  Point,  where  they  remained  the  whole  'week, 
returning  on  board  on  Saturday  night.    In  a  ireek  ot 


# 


#- 


▲mrSDASOK  OF  ANIMAL  FOOD  MET  WITH. 


m 


BO  after  thi^lilre  ooon,  a  mnch  hearier  biid,  became 
more  plentiful  than  the  little  dovekj,  and  from  this 
time  to  the  middle  of  Angast,  so  successful  and  nn- 
tiring  were  our  sportsmen,  that  the  crew  received 
each  a  bird  per  man  a  day. 

"  The  account  kept  on  board  the  Inyestigator  showed 
the  number  of  birds  killed  to  have  amounted  to  about 
4000,  and  yielding  near  2600lb8.  of  meat.  But  more 
than  this  was  obtained,  as  many  were  shot  by  indi- 
viduals for  amusement,  and  not  always  noted." 

Mr.  Goodsir,  surgeon,  when  in  the  Advice  whaler,  on 
her  voyage  up  Lancaster  Sound,  in  the  summer  of  1849, 
speaking  of  landing  on  one  of  the  WoUaston  Islands,  on 
the  west  side  of  Navy  Board  Inlet,  says  he  disturbed 
about  half  a  dozen  pairs  of  eider-duck  {Somateria 
moUissima.)  Their  e^^s  he  found  to  be  within  a  few 
hours  of  maturity.  Inere  were,  besides,  numerous 
nests,  the  occupants  of  which  had  probably  winged 
their  way  southward.  Two  brent  goe8e,(-4/war  bemicla) 
and  a  single  pair  of  arctic  terns,  (Sterna  arctica,) 
were  most  vociferous  and  courageous  in  defence  of 
their  downy  offspring  wherever  he  approached.  These 
were  the  only  birds  he  saw,  with  the  exception  of  a 
solitary  raven,  {Corvus  corax,)  not  very  liigh  over- 
head, whose  sharp  and  yet  musically  bell-like  croak 
came  startling  upon  the  ear. 

Mr.  Snow,  in  his  accourt  of  the  voyage  of  the  Prince 
Albert,  p.  162,  savs,  (^speaking  of  Melville  Bay,  at  the 
northen  head  of  !oattiu^s  Bay,)  ^^  Innumerable  quanti- 
ties of  birds,  especially  the  little  auk,  (  J.^j  aUe,)  and 
the  doveky,  {Colymbtcs  grylle,)  were  now  seen,  (Au- 
gust 6th,)  in  every  direction.  They  were  to  be  ob- 
served in  thousands,  on  the  wing  and  in  the  water, 
and  often  on  pieces  of  ice,  where  they  were  clustered 
together  so  thick  that  scores  miglit  have  been  shot  at 
a  time  by  two  or  three  fowling  pieces." 

In  passing  up  Lancaster  Sound  a  fortnight  later  sev- 
eral shoal  of  eider-ducks  and  large  quantities  of  other 
birds  were  also  seen. 


*"¥v 


..-.^«««-***.  Ci'^^"**— i«{y* 


iK-^inJt».**.»iJM^  Jkki«.>v  «>J«t.4 


# 


4f8 


^fl  c 


fi.-rff 


IMM^  ^»*''i 


''It 


■(^Jr^V^I 


A  BALLAD  OF  SIB  JOHN  PRANK^^  *  *^ 

«  The  Ice  «M  here,  the  ie«  WM  then, 
llie  ico  was  aJl  around."  -~  CouuBOMk 

WniTHBB  Bail  Tou,  Sir  Jobn  Franlclin  t 

Cried  a  whaW  in  Baffin's  Bay  ; 
To  know  if  between  the  land  and  t'^e  Ms,  ^^ 

I  may  find  a  broad  sea-way. 

I  charge  jou  back,  Sir  John  franklin. 

As  you' would  lire  and  tihme^ 
Tor  between  the  land  and  the  ffoaea  Pola 

No  man  inay  sail  alive. 

But  lightly  laughed  the  stout  Sir  John, 

And  spoke  unto  his  men :  — 
Half  England  is  wron^,  if  he  is  right ; 

Bear  off  to  westward  thi«n. 

O,  whither  sail  you,  brave  Englishman  ? 

Oried  the  little  Esquimaux. 
Between  your  land  and  the  polar  star 

My  goodly  vessels  go. 

Cbme  down,  if  you  would  journey  ther^, 

The  little  Indian  said ; 
And  change  your  doth  for  fur  clothing, 

Your  vessel  for  a  sled. 

But  li^tly  laughed  the  stout  Sir  John, 

And  the  crew  laughed  with  him  toe ; 
A  sailor  to  change  m>m  ship  to  sled, 

I  ween,  wore  something  now  1 

All  through  the  long,  long  polar  day, 

The  vessels  westward  sped ; 
And  wherever  the  sail  of  Sir  John  was  blowi^ 

The  ico  gave  way  and  fled.  * 

Gave  way  with  many  a  hollow  groan, 

And  with^any  a  surly  roar ; 
But  it  murmured  .%nd  threatened  on  every  sidt 

And  closed  where  he  sailed  before. 

Ho  I  see  ye  not  my  merry  man. 

The  broad  and  open  sea  ? 
Bethink  ye  what  the  whaler  said, 
Bethink  ye  of  the  little  Indian's  sled  t 
The  crew  laughed  out  in  glee. 

Bir  John,  Sir  John,  't  is  bitter  cold. 

The  scud  drives  on  the  breeze, 
^Tb«  ice  comes  looming  from  the  north, 

The  very  sunbeams  freeze. 

Bright  summer  goee,  dark  winter  comes— 

We  cannot  rule  the  year; 
But  long  ore  aummer's  suu  goes  down, 

On  yonder  sea  we'll  saiK. 


■Mr 


fcri* 


.»s\m 


^ 


▲  BALLAD  OF  tlK  JOHN   FBANKUK. 

TLe  drippiBf  ioebeig*  dipped  aad  roM^ 

And  floundered  dowu  the  gmle ; 
TJm  •bips  were  staid,  the  yards  wore  maniMd^ 

And  furled  the  useless  sail 

The  summer 's  gone,  the  winter 's  come. 

We  sail  not  4m  yonder  sea ; 
Why  sail  we  no^  Sir  John  Franklin  f 

— A  silent  man  was  he. 

The  winter  goes,  the  summer  comes^ 

We  cannot  rule  the  year ; 
I  ween,  we  cannot  rule  the  waya^ 

Sir  Jdin,  wherein  we  'd  steer. 

The  cruel  ice  came  floating  on, 

And  elosed  beneath  the  lee. 
Till  the  thickening  waters  dashed  no  moN^ 
'T  was  ice  around,  behind,  before — 

My  God  I  there  is  no  sea  t 

What  think  you  of  the  whaler  now ! 

What  of  the  Esquimaux  ? 
A  sled  Were  better  than  a  ship. 

To  cruise  ^ough  ice  and  snow. 

Down  sank  the  baleful  crimson  sun ; 

The  northern-lip;ht  came  out, 
And  glared  upon  the  ice-bound  ships^ 

And  shook  its  speai-s  about 

The  snow  came  down,  storm  breeding 

And  bn  the  decks  was  laid  ; 
Till  the  weary  sailor,  sick  at  heart. 

Sank  down  beside  his  spade. 

Sir  o<j!hn,  the  night  is  black  and  long; 

The  hissing  wind  is  bleak  ; 
The  hard,  green  ice  is  Rtrong  as  death  :- 

I  prithee,  captain,  speak. 

The  night  is  neither  bright  nor  ihoT^ 

The  singing  breeze  is  cold, 
The  ice  is  not  so  strong  as  hope; 

The  heart  of  man  is  bold  I 

What  hope  cai^scale  this  icy  wall, 

High  o'er  the  main  flag-staff? 
AboTO  the  ridges  the  wolf  and  bear 
Look  down  with  a  patient,  settled  stare  • 

Look  down  on  Ais  and  laugh. 

The  summer  went,  the  winter  came— 

We  could  not  rule  the  year ; 
But  rammer  will  melt^he  ice  again, 
And  open  a  path  to  the  sunny  maia. 

Whereon  our  ships  shall  stee' 


27» 


SBO 


PBOORKBe  OF  ABOnO  DHWOYBBT. 


I 


# 


Tlie  winter  went,  the  saiumer  went; 

The  winter  Ckme  around  ; 
But  tibe  hard,  green  ice  waa  itronff  as 
And  the  voice  of  hope  sank  to  a  breath, 

Yet  caught  at  every  Round. 

Hark  1  heard  yoa  not  tiie  Bound  of  gun*  t 

And  there,  and  there  again  ? 
T  is  some  uneasy  iceheig's  roar. 

As  he  turns  in  the  frozen  main. 

Hurra  I  hurra  I  the  Esquimanx 

Across  the  ioe*fidda  steal : 
Ood  give  them  graoo  for  thdr  charity  I 

Ye  pray  for  the  silly  seal 

Sir  John,  where  are  the  English  fidiili^ 

And  where  the  English  trees, 
And  where  are  the  little  English  flowera^   - 

That  open  in  the  breeze  ? 

Be  still,  be  still,  my  braye  sailmst  ''' 

You  shall  see  the  fields  again. 
And  smell  the  scent  of  the  opening  flowMC 

The  grass,  and  the  waving  grain. 

Oh  I  when  shall  I  see  my  orphan  child  T 

My  Mary  waits  for  mo ; 
Oh  I  when  shall.  I  see  my  old  mother. 

And  pray  at  her  trembling  knee  t 

Be  still,  be  still,  my  brave  sailors  I 
Think  uot  such  thoughts  again  I 

But  a  tear  froze  slowly  on  his  cheek  ■'» 
He  thought  of  Lady  Jane. 

Ah  I  bitter,  bitter  grows  the  cold. 
The  ice  grows  more  and  more ; 

More  settlM  stare  the  wolf  and  bear. 
More  patient  than  before. 


Oh  I  think  you,  good  Sir  John  Fran]di% 

We  '11  ever  see  the  land  Y 
'T  was  cruel  to  send  us  here  to  starrer 

Without  a  helping  hand. 


■■f 


? 


'T  was  cruel.  Sir  John,  to  serid  as  ha% 

So  far  from  help  or  home ; 
To  starve  and  freeie  on  this  lonely  sea ;     4 
I  ween,  the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty         ^Jt 

Had  rather  send  than  coma 

Oh !  whether  we  starve  to  death  a1on% 

Or  sail  to  our  own  country. 
We  have  done  what  man  has  never  done—* 
rhe  open  ocean  danced  in  the  sun  — 

We  passed  the  NortherQ  Sea  ! 


;    TUE   SEAKOHXNO   EXPKDniOai.  S81 

The  GoVEllNMENT  AND  Pbivate  SxASCHiaG  EzPKDmOKS 

ATTsu  Sib  John  FsAirKLiir. 

The  following  is  a  complete  list  of  the  several  relief 
and  exploring  vessels  which  have  been  sent  out  during 
the  last  two  years  by  the  British  government,  by  private 
individuals,  and  by  the  American  natioi]^^ — 

Shipa  Hen,         Commaftdera. 

1.  H.  M.  S.  Enterprise    -    -  68  Capt.  CoUinson.   . 

2.  H.  M.  S.  Investigator  -    -   65  Com.  M'Clure. 

3.  H.  M.  S.  Plover     -    -    -   62  Com.  Moore. 

4.  H.  M.  S.  Eesolute  -    -    -   68  Capt.  H.  Austin. 

5.  11.  M.  S.  Assistance   -    -   60  Capt.  F.  Ommaney. 

6.  H.  M.  S.  Intrepid,  (screw 

steamer,)      -    -    -    -    -   30    lieut.  S.  Osbom. 

7.  H.  M.  S.  Intrepid,  (screw 

^     steamer,) 38    Lieut.  Cator.      f 

%  Tlie  Lady  Franklin    -    -   25    Mr.  Penny. 
9.  The  Sophia,  (a  tender  to  ?. 

the  above,) 22    Mr.  Stewart.      »| 

10.  United   States  brig  Ad- 

vance -    -    -    -    -  20    Lieut.  De  Haven. 

11.  United  States  vessel  Kes- 

cue  18    Mr.  S.  P.  Griffin. 

12.  Felix  yacht Capt.  Sir  John  Koss. 

13.  Mary,  (tender  to  the  Felix.) 

14.  The  Korth  Star,  Master  and  Commander  Saunders. 

15.  The  Prince  Albert      -    -   18    Com.  Forsyth.- 

Of  these  vessels  the  Enterprise,  Investigator,  and 
Plover,  are  at  present  engaged  on  the  western  branch 
of  search  through  Behring's  Straits.  The  rest  have  all 
proceeded  through  Baffin's  Bay  to  Lancaster  Sound,  and 
the  channels  branching  out  from  thence,  except  the  last 
two,  which  have  returned  home. 

V"0YAGE     OF    THE    "ENTERPRISE"    AND     "  InVESTIGATOR" 

UNDER  Captain  Sir  Jaueb  C.  Ross,  1848-49. 

In  the  spring  of  1848,  Captain  Sir  James  C.  Ross 
was  placed  in  command  of  a  well  found  and  fitted  ex- 
peiHtion,  with  means  and  advantages  of  unneual  extent. 


2S2 


PB0OBB88  OF  ABOHO  DISOOTIBT. 


\ 


and  with  an  object  that  could  not  fail  to  stimulate  in 
the  highest  degree  the  energies  and  perseverance  of  all 
emba&ed  in  it  With  the  ever  present  feeling,  too,  that 
the  lives  of  their  countrymen  and  brother  sailors  de- 
pended, (under  God's  good  providence,)  upon  their 
unflinching  exertions,  Captain  Boss  and  his  followers 
went  forth  in  the  confident  ^ope  that  their  efforts  might 
be  crowned  with  success. 

The  season  was  considerably  advanced  before  tie 
whole  of  the  arrangements  were  completed,  for  it  was 
not  until  the  12th  or  June,  1848,  that  Captain  Boss  leift 
England,  having  under  his  charge  the  Enterprise  and 
Investigator,  with  the  following  officers  and  crews  :— 

Enterprise^  640  tons. 

Captain — Sir  James  C.  Ross. 

Lieutenants — R.  J.  L.  M'Clure,  F.  L.  McClintod^ 

and  "W.  H.  J.  Browne. 
Aidster — TV.  S.  Conldery,  (actingj 
burton  —  W.  Robertson,  (Jj)  M.  D.  . 

Assistant-Surgeon  — ■  H.  Matthias. 
Gerk — Edward  Whitehead. 

Total  complement,  68. 

■.J,  .*;■■' 

Investigator^  A&O  ions. 
Captain— E.  J.  Bird, 
life  ""tenants—M.  G.  H.  W.  Ross,  Frederick  Robinsoii 

and  J.  J.  Bamavd. 
Master — W.  Tatham. 
Surgeon  —  Robert  Anderson. 
Mates  —  L.  J.  Moore  and  S.  G.  Cresswell. 
Second  Master — John  H.  Allard. 
Assistant-Surgeon --  E.  .iJams. 
Clerk  in  Charge  —  J;imes  T),  GilpiT .  - 

Total  complement,* 67. 

Thu  ships  reached  the  Danish  settlement  of  TTpper- 
navick,  situated  on  one  of  the  group  of  Woman's  Islands 
on  the  western  shore  of  Baffin's  Bay,  on  the  6th  of 
July.    Running  through  this  intricate  archipelago,  thev 


.^ 


T01A.QE  OF  EirrECPlUBB  j^ND  INVSSTIOATOB.       283 

were  made  fast,  on  the  20th,  to  an  iceberg  aground  off 
Cape  Shackleton.  The  ships  were  towed,  during  ike 
next  few  dgys,  ^hrough  loose  streams  oi  fee,  and  on.  the 
luoming  of  thb  26th  were  off  the  three  islands  of  Bafiin 
in  latitude  74°  K.  Calms  and  light  winds  so  greatly 
impeded  any  movement  in  the  pack,  that  day  aftei 
day  passed  away  until  the  season  nad  so  far  advanced 
as  to  preclude  every  ho^e  of  accomplishing  much,  if 
any  thing,  before  the  settmg  in  of  winter.  f 

Ko  exertions,  however,  ^r^are  spared  to  take  advantage 
of  every  opportunity  of  pushing  forvrard,  until,  on  the 
20th  of  August,  during  &  heavy  breeze  from  the  north- 
east, the  ships  under  aU  sail  bored  through  a  p{u;k  of  ice 
of  but  moderate  thickness,  but  hs.ving  among  it  heavy 
masses,  through  which  it  was  necessary  to  drive  them  at 
all  hazards.  The  shocks  the  ships  £  ustained  during  this 
severe  trial  were  great,  but  fortunately  witliout  serious 
damage  to  them.  Getting  into  clear  water  in  lat  75  i  K., 
and  long.  68°  TV.,  on  the  23d  the  ships  stood  in  to 
Fondas  Say,  but  no  traces  of  Esquimaux  or  other  human 
beings  were  discovered,  although  signals  were  made  and 
guns  fired  at  repeated  intervSs.  The  ships  were  kept 
close  to  th3  land,  and  a  rigid  exami];iation  made  of  tne 
coast  to  the  northward,  so  that  neither  people  nor  boats 
could  have  passed  without  being  seen.  On  the  26th 
the  ships  arrived  off  Possession  Say,  and  a  party  was 
(;ent  on  shore  to  search  for  any  traces  of  the  expedition 
having  touched  at  this  general  point  of  rendezvous. 
Nothing  was  found  but  the  paper  left  there  recording 
the  vkit  of  Sir  Edward  Parry,  on  the  very  day  (August 
30th)  in  1819.  From  this  point  the  examination  of  the 
coast  was  continued  with  equal  care.  On  the  1st  of 
September  they  arrived  off  Cape  York,  and  a  boat's 
crew  was  sent  on  shore,  to  fix  a  conspicuous  mark,  and 
leave  information  for  the  guidance  of  any  future  party 
that  might  touch  here. 

I  shafl  now  take  up  the  narrative  in  Sir  James  Koss's 
own  words  — ."  We  stood  over  toward  northeast  cape 
until  we  came  in  with  the  edge  of  a  pack,  too  dense  mv 
us  to  penetrate,  lying  between  us  and  Leopold  Island, 


»b4 


PR0GBES8  OF  AKOTIO  DISOOTEBT. 


\    *T 


i&bmit  fourteen  miles  broad  ;  we  therefore  coasted  the 
north  shore  of  Barrow^s  Strait,  to  seek  a  harbor  farther 
to  the  westward,  and  to  examine  the  numerous  inlets  of 
that  shore.  Maxwell  Bay,  and  several  smaller  indenta- 
tions, were  thoroughly  explored,  and,  although  we  got 
near  the  entrance  oi  Wellmgton  Channel,  the  iimi  bar- 
rier of  ide  which  stretched  across  it,  and  which  had  not 
broken  away  this  season,  convinced  us  all  was  imprac- 
ticable in  that  direction.  We  now  stood  to  the  south- 
west to  seek  for  a  harbor  near  Capo  Bennell,  but  found 
a  heavy  body  of  ice  extending  frem  the  west  of  Com- 
wallis  Islana  in  a  compact  mass  to  Leopold  Island. 
Coasting  along  the  pack  during  stormy  and  foggy 
weather,  we  had  dimculty  in  keeping  the  ships  free 
during  theniffhts,for  I  believe  so  great  a  quantity  of  ice 
was  never  before  seen  in  Barrow's  Sti-ait  at  thi$  period 
of  the  season.", 

r  Fortunately,  after  some  days  of  anxious  and  arduous 
work,  the  ships  were  ^ot  through'the  pack,  and  secured 
in  the  harbor  of  Port  Leopold  on  the  11th  of  September. 
No  situation  could  be  better  adapted  for  the  purpose 
than  this  locality ;  being  at  the  junction  of  the  four 

freat  channels  of  Barrow's  Strait,  Lancaster  Sound, 
*rince  Regent  Inlet,  and  "WellingtJon  Channel,  it  was 
hardly  possible  for  any  party,  after  abandoning  their 
ships,  to  pass  along  the  shores  of  any  of  those  inlets, 
witnout  finding  inaications  of  th6  proximity  of  these 
ships. 

The  night  following  the  very  day  of  the  ships'  getting 
in,  the  main  pack  closed  with  the  land,  and  completely' 
sealed  the  mouth  of  the  harbor.  The  long  winter  was 
passed .  in  exploring  and  surveying  journeys  along  the 
coasts  in  all  directions.  During  the  winter  as  many  as 
fifty  white  foxes  were  taken  alive,  in  traps  made  of 
empty  casks  set  for  the  purpose.  As  it  was  well  known 
how  large  a  tract  of  country  these  animals  traverse  in 
search  of  food,  copper  coUai-s,  (upon  which  a  notice  of 
the  position  of  the  ships  and  depots  of  provisions  was 
engraved,)  were  clinched  round  their  necks,  and  they 
were  tlien  set  ^^e,  in  the  hope  that  sovf^  of  these  fou^ 


t 


VOTA.OK  or  JCNTB&PBI&K   AVO  INVUmOATOB. 


S86 


footed  lueBsengers  might  be  the  meanfi  of  conveTiiig  th« 
intelligence  to  the  Erebus  and  Terror,  as  the  crews  of 
those  vessels  would  naturally  be  eager  for  their  capture. 
The  months  of  April  and  May  were  occupied  by  Oapt. 
Koas,  Lieut.  McClintock,  and  a  party  of  twelve  men,  in 
examining  and  thoroup;hly  exploring  all  the  inlets  and 
smaller  indentations  of  the  northern  and  western  coasts 
of  Boothia  peninsula,  in  which  any  ships  might  have 
found  shelter. 

From  the  high  land  in  the  neighborhood  of  Gape 
Bunny,  Capt.  Boss  obtained  a  very  extensive  view,  and 
observed  that  the  whole  space  between  it  and  Cape 
Wcalker  to  the  west,  and  Wellington  Strait  to  the  north, 
was  occupied  by  very  heavy  hummocky  ice. 

^'  The  examination  of  the  coast,"  Sir  James  Boss  tells 
us,  "  was  pursued  until  the  6th  of  June,  when,  having 
consumed  more  than  half  our  provisions,  and  the  strength 
of  the  party  being  much  reduced,  I  was  reluctantly 
compelled  to  abandon  further  operations,  as  it  was, 
moreover,  necessary  to  give  the  men  a  day  of  rest. 
Bnt  that  the  time  might  not  wholly  be  lost,  I  proceeded 
with  two  hands  to  the  extreme  south  point  in  si^ht  from 
our  encampment,  distant  about  eight  or  nine  miles." 

This  extreme  poi^-t  is  situate  in  lat.  72°  38'  N.,  and 
long.  95°  40'  "W.,  and  is  the  west  face  of  a  small  hiffh 
peninsula.  The  state  of  the  atmosphere  being  at  tne 
time  peculiarly  favorable  for  distinctness  of  vision,  land 
of  any  great  elevation  might  have  been  seen  at  the  diek 
tance  ot  100  miles.  The  nighest  cape  of  the  coast  was 
not  more  than  fifty  nailes  distant,  bearing  nearly  duo 
south.  A  very  narrow  isthmus  was  found  to  separate 
Prince  Begent  Inlet  from  the  western  sea  at  Cresswell 
and  Brentford  Bays.  The  ice  in  this  quarter  proved  to 
be  eight  feet  thick.  A  large  cairn  of  stones  was  erected, 
and  on  the  6th  of  June,  the  return  journey  was  com- 
menced. After  encountering  a  variety  of  difficulties 
they  reached  the  ships  on  the  23d,  ^(>  completely  worn 
out  by  fatigue,  that  every  man  was,  from  some  cause  or 
other,  in  tie  doctor's  hands  for  two  or  three  weeks. 
During  their  absence,  Mr.  Matthias,  the  assistant-surgeon 


mait» 


raOOKKSS   OP  ARCnO  DISCOVERT.    *^^X 


■''4 


of  the  Enterprise,  had  died  of  cousumption.  Several  of 
the  crews  ot  both  ships  were  in  a  declining  state,  m\\ 
the  general  report  of  health  was  by  no  means  cheering. 

Wliile  Captain  Rose  was  away,  Commander  Bird 
bad  dispatched  other  surveying  parties  in  different  '•- 
rections.  One,  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Bar 
nard,  to  the  northern  shore  of  Barrow's  Strait,  crossiii » 
the  ice  to  Cape  Hind ;  a  second,  commanded  by  Lieu- 
tenant  Browne,  to  the  eastern  shore  of  Regent  Inlet; 
and  a  third  party  of  six  men,  conducted  by  Lieutenant 
Robinson,  along  the  western  sb  re  of  the  Inlet.  The 
latter  officer  extended  his  exan  ination  of  the  icoast  as 
far  as  Cresswell  Bay,  several  miles  to  the  southward 
of  Fury  Beach.  He  found  the  house  still  standing  in 
which  Sir  John  Ross  passed  the  winters  of  1832-33, 
together  with  a  qunntity  of  the  stores  and  provisions 
of  the  Fury,  lost  there  m  1827.  On  opening  some  of 
the  packages  containing  flour,  sugar  and  peas,  they 
were  nil  Ibund  to  be  in  excellent  preservation,  and  tlie 
preserved  soup  as  good  as  when  manufactured.  The 
labors  of  these  searching  parties  were,  however,  of 
comparatively  short  duration,  as  they  all  suffered  from 
snow-blindness,  j^prained  ankles,  and  debility. 

As  ii  v;a  .  nowlmt  too  evident,  from  no  traces  of  the 
absent  expedition  having  been  met  with  by  any  of 
these  pai-ties,  that  the  ships  could  not  have  been  de- 
tained anywhere  in  this  part  of  the  arctic  regions, 
Captain  Ross  considered  it  most  desirable  to  push  for- 
ward to  the  westward  as  soon  as  his  ships  should  be  lib- 
erated. His  chief  hopes  now  centered  in  the  efforts  of 
Sir  John  Richardson's  party;  but  he  felt  persuaded 
that  S:?  John  Franklin'b  ships  must  have  penetrated 
BO  far  beyond  Melville  Island  as  to  induce  him  to  prefer 
making  for  the  continent  of  America  rather  than  seek- 
ing assistance  from  the  whale  ships  in  Baffin's  Bay. 
The  crews,  weakened  by  incessant  exertion,  were  now 
in  a  very  unfit  state  to  undertake,  the  heavy  labor 
which  they  had  yet  to  accomplish,  but  all  hands  that 
wer«  able  were  set  to  work  with  saws  to  cut  a  channel 
toward  the  point  of  the  harbor,  a  distance  of  lather 


?0TAOK  09  KNTE]U*KI8E   AND  INVESTIOATOB. 


S87 


more  than  two  miles,  and  on  the  28tk  of  Angnst  the 
ships  got  clear.  Before  quitting  the  port,  a  house  was 
built  of  the  spare  spars  of  both  snips,  and  covered  with 
Buch  of  the  housing  cloths  as  coula  be  dispensed  with. 
Twelve  months'  provisions,  fuel,  and  other  necessaries 
were  also  left  behind,  together  with  the  steam  launch 
belonging  to  the  Investigator,  which,  having  be^n  pur- 
posely lenffthened  seven  feet,  now  formed  a  fine  vessel, 
capable  ofconvevinff  the  whole  of  Sir  John  Franklin's 
pai'ty  to  the  whale  shipa,  if  necessary. 

The  Investigator  and  Enterprise  now  oceeded 
toward  the  northern  shore  of  Barrow's  P  lit,  for  the 
purpose  of  examining  "Wellington  Channel,  '^ ,  if  pos- 
sible, penetrating  as  far  as  Melville  Islan  t  when 
about  twelve  mucs  from  the  shore,  the  ships  ca.ae  to 
tbc  fixed  land-ice,  and  found  it  impossible  to  proceed. 

On  the  1st  of  September  a  strong  wind  suddenly 
arising,  brought  the  loose  pack,  through  which  they 
had  been  struggling,  down  upon  the  ships,  which  were 
closely  beset.  At  times,  during  two  or  three  days, 
they  sustained  severe  pressure,  and  ridges  of  hum- 
mocks were  thrown  up  all  around ;  but  after  that  tiihe 
the  temperature  falling  to  near  zero,  it  formed  the 
whole  body  of  ice  into  one  solid  mass. 

The  remainder  of  the  narrative,  as  related  by  the 
Commander  of  the  expedition  in  his  official  dispatch, 
will  not  bear  abridgment. 

'^  We  were  so  circumstanced  that  for  some  days  we 
could  not  unship  the  rudder,  and  when,  by  the  labori- 
ous operation  ox  sawing  and  removing  the  hummocks 
from  under  the  8tem,  we  were  able  to  do  bo,  we  found 
it  twisted  and  damaged ;  and  the  ship  was  so  much 
strained,  as  to  increase  the  leakage  from  three  inches 
in  a  fortnight  to  fourteen  inches  daily.  The  ice  was 
stationary  for  a  few  days ;  the  pressure  had  i|p  folded 
the  lighter  pieces  over  each  omer  and  they  were  so 
interlaced,  as  to  form  one  entire  sheet,  extending  froni 
shore  to  shore  of  Barrow's  Strait,  and  as  far  to  the  east 
and  west  as  the  eye  could  discern  from  the  mast-head, 
while  the  extreme  severity  of  the  temperature  had 


(^■Xj'ti'iSi  iV  '  »-itw«* 


->. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


1.1 


yaiZS     |2.5 
^  1^    12.2 


IM 


2.0 


1.8 


1125  iU   11.6 


V] 


W 


7 


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7 


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Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


4^ 


■^ 


M8     »<   V      FMOGSESS  OF  AMCmO  D^^OOVEItr« 

c«inented  the  whole  bo  firmly  toaether  that  it  a^ppeared 
highly  improbable  that  it  conla  break  «i>  agam  this 
season.  In  tha  space  which  had  been  cleared  away 
for  unshipping  the  mdder,  the  newly-formed  ice  was 
fifteen  inches  thick,  and  in  some  places  along  the  ship's 
aide  the  thirteen4eet  sorewa  were  too  short  to  work. 
We  had  now  fully  made  up  our  mihds  that  the  ships 
were  fixed  f<Nr  the  winter,  and  dismal  as  tbe  prospect 
appeared,  it  was  Ikr  pfe£nmble  to  being  carried  along 
the  west  coast  of  Baffin's  Bay,  where  \ke  munded 
borgs  are  in  such  numbers  upon  the  ihallow  banks  off 
that  shore,  as  to  render  it  :aext  to  impossible  for  ships 
inrolved  in  a  pack  to  esoape  destraction.  It  was, 
therefore,  with  a  mixture  of  hope  and  anxiety  that,  on 
the  wind  shifting  to  the  westward,  we  perceived  the 
whole  body  of  iee  begin  to  drive  to  the  eastward,  at  the 
rate  of  eij^t  to  ten  miles  daily.  Svery  effort  on'om 
part  was  totally  unavailing,  for  no  human  power  conM 
have  moved  either  of  the  shipe  a  single  inch ;  they  were 
thus  comfdetely  taken  out  oi  our  own  hands,  and  in  the 
center  of  a  field  of  ice  more  than  fifbf  miles  in  circnm- 
fbrence^  were  earned  along  the  southern  shore  d 
Lancaster  Sound. 

^'  After  passing  its  entrance,  the  ice  drifted  in  a  inore 
southeiiy  airection,  along  the  western  shore  of  Baffin's 
Bay,  until  we  were  abreast  of  Pond's  Bay,  to  the  sonth- 
ward  of  which  we  observed  a  great  number  of  iceberes 
stretching  across  our  pi^  and  presenting  the  ^arinl 
prospect  of  our  worst  antioipatioBS.  But  when  least 
expected  by  us,  our  releasa  was  almost  n^iracnlouBly 
brought  about,  ^e  great  fidd  of  ice  was  rent  into 
innumerable  fragnaents,  as  if  by  ■obm  unseen  power." 
^  By  enexgetia  exertion,  warping,  and  sailing,  the  ships 
-got  clear  of  the  pack,  and  rea<3ied  an  open  space  of 
watiar  on  the  25th  of  September.  ^  ><  > 

**It  is  impossible^'*  says  Captain  Ross,  in  his  eon 
duding  observatioDS,  ^to  convey  any  idea  of  the  sen 
sationwe  experienecfi  when  we  l»und  ourselves  oncf 
moi^  at  liberty,  while  many  a  grateful  heart  poured 
:fi»fth  its  praiass  and  thanksgiviagt  to  AJiu^ty  God 
for  this  ur .looked  for  deliverance.'" 


TOYAax  oy  jaTExnuaM  axd  urvivno^To^.     S89 

*^Tbe  sdr^noe  of  winter  had  now  okeed  all  the  har- 
bors a^nst  us ;  and  at  it  was  impowible  to  pen«fU*ato 
to  the  westward  through  the  pack  from  which  we  had 
just  been  liberated,  I  made  the  sijraal  to  the  Investi- 
gator (xf  my  intention  to  return  to  England." 

After  a  &vorable  passa^,  the  ships  arrived  home 
earl  J  in  November,  Oaptam  Bit  J.  C.  Boss,  reporting 
himsdf  at>he  Admiralty  on  the  5th  of  Kovember. 

As  Uiis  is  the  last  arctic  voyage  oiSir  James  G.  Boss, 
it  is  a  fitting  place  for  some  reeord  of  his  arduous 
tervicee. 

Captain  Sir  James  Clarke  Ross  entered  the  navy  in 
1812,  and  served  as  volunteer  of  the  first  class,  mid- 
shipman and  mate  until  1817,  with  his  nnde  Com- 
mander Boss.  In  1818  he  was  appointed  Admiiftlty 
midshipman  in  the  Isabella,  on  Commander  Boss's  first 
voyage  of  discovery  to  the  arctic  seas.  He  was  then 
midshipman  in  the  two  following  years  with  Captain 
Parry,  in  the  HecUi ;  followed  him  again  in  the  Fury 
in  his  second  Toyage,  and  was  promoted  on  the  26th 
of  December,  1822.  In  1824  and  1825,  he  was  lieu- 
tenant in  the  Fury,  under  Captain  Hoppner,  on  Parry's 
third  voyage.  In  4827,  he  was  appointed  first  lieuten- 
ant of  the  Heola,  under  Parry,  ana  accompanied  him 
in  command  of  the  second  boat  in  his  attempt  to  reach 
the  North  Pole.  On  his  return  he  received  liis  j»romo- 
tibn  to  the  xank  of  commander,  the  8th  of  November, 
1827.  From  1829  to  1833,  he  was  employed  with  his 
sude  as  second  in  command  in  the  Victory  on  tiie  pri- 
vate expedition  sent  out  by  Mr.  Felix  Booth.  Dunng 
this  period  hb  Tilmted,  on  the  1st  of  June,  1881,  Uie 
British  fl^g  on  tiie  North  Magnetic  Pole.  For  this,  on 
his  I'etnm,  he  was  presented  by  the  Herald's  College 
with  an  addition  to  nis  faipily  arms  of  ftn  esuecial  crest, 
representing  a  flag-staff  erect  on  a  i-ock,  with  the  union 
jack  h(Hsted  thereon,  inscribed  with  <^  date,  ^1  June, 
1831."  On  the  28d  of  October,  183i,  he  was  promoted 
to  the  rank  o^  Qaptaiot  and  in  the  following  year  em* 
ployed  in  making  magnetic  observations,  preparatory 
to  the  gene^"^!  magnetic  survey  of  England.     In  tM 


290 


•? 


rJIOOBKSS  OF  iJiGnO.  DISgOVKKT. 


clOBQ  of  1836,  it  haying  been  represented  to  the  ^.d 
muliUty,  from  Hull,  that  eleven  wnale  ships,  having  on 
board  600  men,  were  left  in  the  ice  in  Davis'  Strait, 
and  in  imminent  danger  of  periling,  nnleae  rdief  were 
forwarded  ta  them,  the  Loras  Commissioners  resolved 
upon  sending  out  a  ship  to  search  for  them*  Captain 
tJEbDss,  with  that  promptitude  and  humanity  which  has 
alwavs  characterized  nim,  volunteered  to  go  out  in  the 
depth  ct'  winter,  and  the  lieutenants,  F.  IL  M.  Crozier, 
Inman,  and  Ommaney,  with  the  three  mates,  Jesse, 
Buchan,  and  John  Smith,  and  Mr.  Hallett,  clerk  in 
cliarge, Joined  him.  They  sailed  from  England  on  the 
21st  of  j!)ecember,  and  on  arriving  in  Davis^Strait,  after 
a  stormy  passage,  found  that  nine  of  the  missing  ships 
were  by  that  time  in  England,  that  the  tenth  was  re- 
leased on  her  passage,  and  that  the  other  was  in  all 
probability  lost,  as  some  of  her  water-casks  had  been 
picked  up  at  sea.  From  1837  to  1838,  Captain  Boss 
was  emploved  in  determining  the  variation  of  the  com- 
pass  on  aU  parts  of  the  coast  of  Great  Britain ;  and 
irc^a  1839  to  1843,  as  Captain  of  the  Erebus,  in  com- 
mand of  the -antarctic  expedition.  In  1841,  he  was 
presex^ted  with  the  foundoi*'s  medal />f  the  Boyal  Geo- 
graphical Society  of  Lond<»,  f(nr  his  discoveries  toward 
the  SouUi  Pole ;  and  he  has  also  received  the  gold 
medal  of  the  Geographical  Society  of  Paris.  On  the 
13th  of  March,  1844,  ne  received  uie  honor  of  knig!l^ 
hood  from  the  Queen,  and  in  June  of  the  same  year 
the  University  of  Oxford  bestowed  on  him  their  hono^ 
ary  degree  of  D.  C.  L.  In  1MB,  he  went  out,  as  we 
have  ju9t  seeUf  in  the  Entei^prise,  in  Command  of  one 
of  the  searching  expeditions  sent  to  seek  for  Franklin. 

TOTAOB  OF  H.  M.         ^IfOBTH  StAE." 

■f '  •    ' 

.  Tbe  North  Star,  of  500  tons,  was  fitted  out  In  the 
•pffing  of  1849,  under  the  command  of  Mr.  J.  Saunders, 
wJm  had  been  aelang  master  with  Captain  Bade,  in  the 
Tl^moTyTD  her  perilous  voyage  t0  ^6  Frosen  Strait,  in 


:t: 


VOYAGE  OF  TUB  KOSTU  WTAJBU 


fi91 


The  following  are  the  officers  of  the  ships  :*- 

Haeter  Commanding — J.  Saunders. 

Second  Masters — John  Way,  M.  Korman,  H.  B. 

Gawler. 
Acting  Ice-mastors  —  J.  Leach,  and  G.  Sabestor. 
Assistant  Surgeon — James  Kae,  M.  D. 
Clerk  in  Charge — Jasper  Butter. 

The  Korth  Star  sailed  ^om  the  river  Thames,  on  the 
2^  of  May,  1849,  freighted  with  provisions  for  the 
missing  expedition,  and  with  orders  and  supplies  for 
the  Enterprise  and  Investigator. 

The  following  is  one  of  &e  early  dispatches  from  the 
eommander : — 

"  To  the  Secretary  of  the  Admiralty, 

«  jET.  M.  8:]forth  Star,  July  19, 1849, 
lat,  74«  8'  iT.,  long.  59°  40'  TT. 

*'Sir, — I  addressed  a  letter  to  their  Lordships  on  the 
18th  ult,  when  in  lat  73°  30'  K.,  and  long.  66^  53'  W., 
detailing  the  particulars  of  my  proceedings  up  to  that 
date,  which  letter  was  sent  by  a  boat  from  the  Lady 
Jane,  whaler,  wHich  vessel  was  wrecked,  and  those  boats 
were  proceeding  to  the  Danish  settlements.  Since  then, 
i  regret  to  state,  our  process  has  been  almost  entirely 
itopped,  owing  to  the  ice  being  so  placed  across  Mel- 
ville Bay 'as  to  render  it  perfectly  impassable. 

''  On  the  6th  inst.,  findmg  it  impossible  to  make  any 
progress,  I  deemed  it  advisable  to  run  as  far  S.  as  72  , 
examining  the  pack  as  we  went  along.  At  72°  22'  the 
pacf  appeared  slacker,  and  we  entered  it,  and,  after 
proceeding  about  twelve  miles,  found  ourselves  com- 
pletely stopped  by  large  floes  of  ice.  We  accordingly 
pat  back,  and  steOsed  again  for  the  northward. 
'  "  Having  this  day  reached  the  latitude  of  74°  3'  N., 
ind  lonff.  59°  40'  W.,  the  ice  appeared  more  open,  and 
(Testooa  in  .toward  the  land,  when  we  observed  two 
boats  approaching,  and  which  afterward^  on  coming 
ilon^side,  were  found  to  belong  to  the  Prince  of  Wales, 
whaler,  which  vessel  was  nipped  by  the  ice  on  the  12tb 
nst.,  in  Melville  Bay.  __     •     ^  ^ 


892 


FKOOKKM   OF   AUCTriU   DldOOVUKT. 


"  By  the  captain  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  I  forward 
this  letter  to  their  Lordships,  he  intending  to  procood 
in  Ids  boats  to  the  Banish  settlements. 
*^  X  have  the  honor  to  be,  &g. 

*^  J.  Saundkbb,  Master  and  Oommander. 
"  P.  S.— Grew  all  well  on  board." 

On  the  29th  of  July,  having  reached  the  vicinity  of 
the  BeviPs  Thumb  and  MeWille  Bay,  in  the  northerly 
part  of  Baffin^s  Bav,  she  was  beset  in  an  ice-field,  with 
which  she  drifted  nelplesslv*  about  as  the  tide  or  wind 
impelled  her.  until  the  16tn  of  August,  when,  a  slight  < 
opening  in  the  ice  appearing,  an  effort  was  made  to  | 
heave  through  into  clear  water.  This  proved  labor  in 
vain,  and  no  further  move  was  made  until  the  21st  of 
September,  except  as  she  drifted  in  the  ice  floe  in  which 
she  was  fixed.  On  the  day  last  named  she  was  driving 
betbre  a  hard  ^le  from  the  S.  S.  W.,  directly  down  upon 
an  enoitnous  iceberg  in  Melville  Sound,  upon  which  it 
she  had  struck  in  the  then  prevailing  weather,  her  total 
destruction  would  have  been  inevitable,  rroviden- 
tially  a  comer  of  the  ice-field  in  which  she  was  being 
earned  furiously  alonff  came  Into  violent  collision  with 
the  berg,  a  large  section  was  carried  away,  and  she 
escaped.  On  the  29th  of  September,  1S49,  having  been 
sixty-two  days  in  the  ice,  she  took  up  her  winter  quar- 
ters in  North  Star  Bay,  so  called  after  herself,  t^small 
bay  in  Wolstenholme  Sound,  lying  in  W  33'  north  lat- 
itude, and  68°  56'  west  longitude ;  the  farthest  point  to 
the  north  at  which  a  Britisn  ship  ever  wintered.  •  The 
ship  was  fixed  about  half  a  mile  firom  the  shore,  and 
made  snug  for  the  winter,  sails  were  unbent,  the  masts 
struck,  and  the  ship  housed  over  apd  made  as  warm 
and  comfortable  as  circumstances  woidd  permit.  The 
Ice  soon  after  took  across  the  Sound,  so  tnat  the  crew 
could  have  walked  on  shore.  The  cold  was  intense ; 
but  two  or  three  stores  warmed  the  ship,  rfhd  the  crews 
were  cheered  up  and  encouraged  with  all  sorts  of  games 
and  amusements,  occasionally  visiting  the  shore  ror  the 
purpose  of  skylarking.  !niere  was,  unfortunately,  )>ut 
little  game  tj  shoot.     Former  accounts  gave  this  ph  i» 


TOYAOB  OF  TBI  KORTK  ITAB. 


a  higlfeliftnieldr  for  deer  and  other  anlitiAlg ;  but  the 
crew  of  the  North  Star  nevfr  saw  a  single  head  of  deer, 
and  other  animals  were  scarce  ;  abont  fifty  hares  were 
killed.  Foxes  j^ere  numerous,  and  a  number  shot,  but 
none  taken  alive.  A  few  Esquimaux  families  occasion- 
ally visited  the  ship,  and  one  poor  man  was  brought  on 
board  with  his  feet  so  frozen  that  they  dropped.-  He 
was  placed  under  the  care  of  the  assistant-Burffeon,  Dr. 
Rae,  who  paid  him  much  attention,  and  his  feffs  were 
nearly  curad  ;  but  he  died  from  a  pulmonary  disorder 
after  having  been  on  board  some  six  weeks.  The  North 
Star  was  not  able  to  leave  this  retreat  until  the  1st  of 
August,  1850,  and  sot  into  clear  water  on  the  diird  of 
that  month.  On  me  21st  of  August,  she  spoke  the 
Lady  Franklin,  Oaptain  Penny,  and  her  consort  tiie 
Sophia,  and  the  following  da^  the  Felix,  Bir  John  Boss, 
in  Lancaster  Sound.  Oaptam  Penny  reported  that  he 
had  lefb  Oapf  ^in  Austin  all  well  on  the  ITth  of  August. 
On  the  28d  of  August,  the  North  Star  began  landing 
the  provisions  she  had  carried  out  in  Navy  Board  In- 
let ;  73°  44'  N.  latitude,  80°  66'  W.  longitude.  She 
remained  five  days  there,  and  was  occupied  four  and  a 
half  in  landing  the  stores,  whidi  were  deposited  in  a 
ravine  a  short  distance  from  the  beach  of  Supply  Bay, 
thft  bight  in  Navy  Board  Inlet,  which  the  commander 
of  the  North  Star  so  named.  Tne  position  of  the  stores 
wi^  indicated  by  a  flagHBtaf^  with  a  black  baU,  and  a 
letter  placed  beneath  a  cairn  ni  stones.  They  had  pre- 
viously tried  to  deposit  the  stores  at  Port  Bowen,«and 
Port  Neale,  but  were  prevented  approaching  them  by 
the  ice.  On  the  30th  of  Au^st,  the  North  Star  saw 
and  spoke  the  schooner  Pnnce  Albert,  Commander 
Forsyth,  in  Possession  Bay.  On  the  31st,  a  boat  was 
Bent  to  the  Prince  Albert,  when  Commander  Forsyth 
came  on  board  and  reported  that  he  had  also  been  to 
Port  Neale,  but  had  not  been  able  to  enter  for  the  ice, 
and  had  found  one  of  the  American  ships  sent  out  to 
search  for  Sir  John  Franklin  ashore  in  Barrow's  Strait, 
that  he  had  tendered  assistance,  which  had  been  de- 
clined by  the  American  commander,  as,  his  ship  beings 


9M 


n 


PBOQKiM  or  ABOnO  DmOOVXBT. 


ianii\inrod,  lie  believed  Ids  own  crew  oompeteii^  to  gel 
Uoi'  oK  Commander  Forr^th  reported  that  Oaptain 
Austin  liad  proceeded  to  Pond's  ^ay  in  tke  Intrepid, 
^ndor  to  the  Assistance,  to  land  lett^.  Tbo  North 
Star  wont  on  to  Pond's  Bay,  but  could  not  find  any  in 
dication  of  Oaptain  Austin's  having  been  there.  It  is 
conjectured  that  ho  had  passed  the  app(Hntod  spot  in  a 
fog.  The  North  Star's  people  suffei^  much  irom  the 
intense  cold,  but  only  lost  nve  hands  during  her  peril- 
ous trip  and  arctic  winter  quarters.  She  left  tliere  on 
September  9th,  and  reached  Spithead  on  the  28th  of 
September,  1850.  Since  his  return  Mr.  Saunders  has 
been  appointed  Master  Attendant  of  the  Dock-yard  at 
Malta.  Tlie  Admiralty  have  received  dispatches  from 
Captain  Sir  J.  Boss,  Captain  Penny,  and  Captain  Om- 
maney.  Captain  Ommaney,  in  the  Assistance,  dating 
from  ofi"  Lancaster  Sound,  latitude  76*^  46'  N.,  loDffi- 
tude  T&^  49'  W.,  states  that  some  Esquimaux  had  de- 
scribed to  him  a  ship  being  hauled  in  during  the  last 
winter,  and,  on  ^ing  to  the  spot,  he  found,  m>m  some 
papers  left,  that  it  was  the  North  Star.  He  was  pro- 
ceeding to  search  in  Lancaster  Sound.  Captain  Penny, 
of  the  Lady  Franklin,  writing  from  Lancaster  Sound, 
August  21,  states,  that  having  heard  on  the  18th  from 
Captain  Austin  of  a  report  from,  the  Esquimaux,  that 
Sir  John  Franklin's  ships  had  been  lost  forty  miles 
north,  and  the  crews  murdered,  he  went  with  an  inte^ 
preter,  but  could  find  no^evidence  for  the  rumor,  and 
came  to  the  condnsion  liiat  the  whole  story  had  been 
founded  on  the  North  Star's  wintering  there.  He  con- 
8idei*ed  that  his  interpreter,  M.  Petersen,  had  done  much 
good  by  exposing  the  &llacy  of  the  story  of  Sir  J 
Koss's  Esquimaux. 

Heb  Majesty's  Ships  "Emtebpbisb"  aztd  ^'Investioa 

TOB**  UNDBB  CaPTAIN  CoLLXNSON.         ■ 

Tum  Enbrprise  and  Investigator  were  fitted  out  agair 
immediately  on  their  return  nome,  and  placed  midei 
tho  chargo  of  Captain  B.  Collinson,  C.  B.,  with  the  fol 


*  \  ■  ^: 


SECOND  TSir  or  XMTICKrAiaE  JJTD  IXTiniOATOB.    2i^ 

loiriBg«t>filcen  attached,  to  prooeed  to  Behring's  Strait, 
to  reeume  the  Mareh  ia  that  direction  ;— 

JSkterprUey  840  tons,  , 

Captain— KfOoUinson. 

liontonants-^O.  A.  Phayre,*  J.  J.  Barnard,*  an<l 

O.T.Jago. 
Master— K.  T.  G.  Legg. 
Second  Master — Francis  Skead. 
Hate— M.T.  Parks.  ft 

Snr^n — Robert  Anderson.* 
As8i8tant4Surgeon — Edward  Adams.* 
Clerk  in  Oharae— Edward  Whitehead.* 
«         Total  complement,  66. 

Investigator, 

Commander — R.  J.  M'Clure.* 
Lieutenants — W.  H.  Haswell  and  S.  G.  CresswelL* 
Hates — H.  H.  Saintsbory  and  R.  J.  Wyniatt 
Second  Master — Stephen  Court* 
Snr^n — Alexander  Armstrong,  M.  D. 
Aroistant-Sorgeon — Hy.  Piers. 
Cl«rk  in  Oharse  ^  Joseph  0.  Paine. 
Total  complement,  66. 

Those  officers  marked  with  a  star  had  been  with  the 
ships  in  their  last  voyaffe. 

These  vessels  sailed  n*om  Plymouth  on  the  20th  of  * 
January,  1850.  A  Mr.  Micrtsching,  a  Moravian  mi  - 
sionary,  was  appointed  to  the  Enterprise,  as  interpreter. 
This  sentleman  is  in  the  prime  of  life,  of  robust  health, 
inured,  by  a  service  of  five  years  in  Labrador,  to  the 
hardships  and  privations  of  the  arctic  regions,  and  fluffi- 
cientihr  acquainted  with  the  language  and  manners  of 
the  Esquimaux  to  be  able  to  hold  friendly  and  unre- 
served mtercourse  with  them. 

The  Investigator  and  the  Enterprise  were  at  the 
Sandwich  Islilnds  on  Juno  29tb.  Captain  Collinson 
purposed  sailing  in  a  few  days,  and  expected  to  reach 
the  ice  about  the  $^  of  July.     Prior  to  his  arrival, 


\: 


n$ 


rBOCnOM  Ot  ABOnO  DDOOTIBT 


•1% 


nvmerous  wlmlen  had  started  fbr  the  Strait,  <»i^  in  jmt 
ticular,  under  the  eommand  of  a  Oaptain  Bojb,  with 
the  expressed  intention  of  endeayoruig  to  earn  the 
Franklin  reward.  ^ 

These  vessels  are  intended  to  penetrate,  if  poaaihle,  to 
the  Wedteni  extremity  of  Helrille  Island,  there  to  winter, 
and  make  farther  search,  in  the  spring  of  1851,  for  thv 
crews  of  the  lost  ships. 

In  a  letter  from  Oaptain  Oollinson  to  Goraxnander  He 
Clure,  dated  Oahn,  June  29th,  I860,  with  a  sight  of 
which  I  have  been  favored  at  the  Admiralty,  he  thug 
describes  his  intentions — ^^I  intend  making  the  pack 
close  to  the  Ameri^n  shore,  and  availing  myself  of  the 
first  favorable  opening  west  of  the  coast  stream  ^  pressing 
forward  toward  Melville  Island.  In  the  event  of  meet- 
ing land,  it  is  most  probable  that  I  wonld  pursue  the 
southern  shore." 

'The  latest  letter  received  from  Commander  HcClure 
IS  dated  Kotzebue  Sound,  July  27th,  1850,  and  the 
following  is  an  extract : — 

*^  Yon  will  be  ^ad  to  leam  that  to  this  we  have  been 
highly  favored,  carrvinff  a  feir  wind  from  Whoa,  which 

Elace  we  left  on  the  Ith.  We  passed  the  Aleutian 
jlands  on  the  20th,  in  172°  80'  W.,  and  got  fairly 
through  the  Straits  to-dav,  and  we  consider  we  are  upon 
our  ground ;  the  otAy  dfetriment  has  been  very  dense 
fogs,  which  have  rendered  the  navigation  of  the  islands 
exceedingly  nervous  work ;  but  as  the  object  to  be 
achieved  is  of  so  important  a  nature,  all  hazards  must 
bo  run  to  carry  out  the  intentions  of  those  at  home^ 
which  have  very  fortunately  terminated  without  acci- 
dent We  are  now  maldnff  the  most  of  our  wind,  and 
we  hope  to  meet  an  American  whaler,  of  which  I  be- 
lieve tHere  are  a  great  number  fishing  this  season,  and 
to  whom  we  must  intrust  our  last  dispatches.  Sincerely 
do  I  trust  that,  ere  we  return,  some  tidings  of  pbor  Sii 
John  and  his  noble  companions  may  rewaS  our  search : 
which  wUl  render  the  longHBOught  for  passage,  should 
it  be  our  fortune  to  make  it,  one  of  the  most  memorable 
in  the  annals  of  our  times,  and  relieve  many  an  anxious 
breast " 


n. 


8800NO  TBIY  QV 


\MO  unrwnoATOR.  HSn 


OiBpatchoi  hare  been  reoeived  At  the  Admiraltv  A-ona 
OiptaiB  KeUet,  0.  B.,  of  h«r  HaJMi/*  Bhip  Herald. 
dated  at  Ma,  ^e  14th  of  October,  1860,  on  ms  letnm^. 
from  Bebrin^'i  Strait  Tke  Herald  bad  oommuiucated 
^th  her  Mi^ty'i  sMp  Florer,  on  the  10th  of  July,  at 
Ch»miR80  Island,  wliere  the  Plover  had  passed  the  pre- 
ceding winter.  The  two  ehips  proceeded  to  the  north* 
ward  until  they  siffhted  the  pack-ice,  when  the  Herald 
returned  to  Oape  Lisbnme,  in  quest  of  Ca|»tain  Oollui- 
Bon's  expedition,  and  on  the  diet  fell  in  with  her  Hi\j- 
esty's  ship  Investigator,  wbioh  had  made  a  surprisin^v 
short  passage  of  twenty-six  days  from  the  oandwifiiL 
Islands.  Tne  Herald  remained  cruising  off  Oape  Lia- 
bume,  and  again  fell  in  with  the  Plovei*  on  the  13th  of 
August,  on  l^r  return  from  Point  Barrow,  Oonunandei 
If  oore  having  eoasted  in  his  boats,  and  minutely  oxam- 
ined  the  several  inlets  as  far  as  that  point  from  ley  Oape 
writhont  gaining  any  intelligence  or  the  mismng  expedi- 
tion. Oonomandor  Hoore  and  his  boat's  orew  iuuf  suf- 
fered severely  from  exposure  to  cold.  Oaptain  Kellet, 
having  fully  victualed  the  Plover,  ordered  her  to  winter 
in  Grantley  Harbor  (her  former  anchorage  at  Ohamisso 
Island  not  being  considered  safb,)  and  th-ou  returned  to 
the  southward  on  his  way  to  £ha^land 

Dispatches  have  also  1>een  received  frx>m  Oaptain  Ool 
linson,  O.  B^  of  her  Majesty's  ship  Enterprise,  and 
Commander  liTOlure,  of  her  Majesty's  ship  Investigator 
l»f  which  the  liE^owing  are  €Q]»e0  :-^ 

*^Pof4mareMi8j8epe,  13^1960, 

**Sir,-^I  have  the  honor  to  transmit  an  account  of 
the  proceedings  Of  her  Majesty's  ship  miLder  my  com 
mand  since  leaving  Oahn  on  the  30^  of  June. 

^' Being  delayed  by  light  winds,  we  only  reached  tha 
western  end  of  the  Aleutian  Ohain  by  the  29th  of  July, 
and  made  the  Island  of  St.  Lawrenee  on  the  .11th  ot  . 
August,  from  whence  I  shaped  a  course  for  Oape  jLii^ 
bwne,  in  anticipation  of  felling  i|t,li^|l, |ili«  ^^<^.<|f,i 


t 


m 


vaoamm  ew  iaano  vaocmarr. 


the  Plorer.  Kot,  however,  Mtiiig  either  of  these  ym. 
selfl,  and  finding  nothiiiff  depoeited  on  shore,  I  went  on 
to  Wainwright  Inlet,  the  last  rendezvous  appointed. 
Here  we  eommnnieated  <m  the  15th,  and  being  aliks 
Qttsaceessftil  in  obtaining  an^  infinTnation,  I  stood  to 
the  north,  made  the  ioe  fulowing  moning,  and  reached 
the  latitude  72P  iO^  K.  in  the  meridian  of  159°  8(y  W., 
withont  serions  obstmotion.  Here,  however,  the  pack 
became  so  close  that  it  was  impossible  to-malce  way  in 
an^  direction  except  to  the  southward.  Having  extri* 
oated  ourselves  by  noon  on  the  19th,  we  continued  to 
coast  along  the  edge  of  the  main  bodj,  which  took  a 
southeasterly  trend,  running  through  the  loose  streatni, 
so  as  not  to  lose  sight  of  ti^t  pack.  At  4  a.  m.  on  the 
20th  we  were  in  tne  meridian  of  Point  Barrow,  and 
twentj-eigfat  miles  to  the  north  of  it,  when  we  found 
open  water  to  the  N.  E.,  in  which  we  sailed,  without 
losing  sight  of  the  ice  to  the  north  until  the  morning 
of  the  Slst,  when  we  were  obstructed  bj  a  heavy  bar- 
rier trendiuff  to  the  southwest.  A  thick  foff  coming  on, 
we  made  a  board  to  the  north,  in  order  to  teel  the  pack 
edge  in  the  upper  part  of  the  bight,  and  not  to  leave 
any  part  unex]  lored.  Having  satisfied  myself  that  no 
opening  existea  ^n  this  direction,  we  bore  away  to  the 
south,  running  through  heavy  floes  closely  packed,  and 
pushing  to  the  eastward  when  an  opportunity  Offered. 
th  this,  however,  we  weire  unsuccessful,  being  com- 

Eelled  to  pursue  a  westerly  course,  the  floes  being  veiy* 
oavy  and  hummockj.  By  8  P.  m.  we  were  within 
thifty  miles  of  the  laud,  and  having  clear  weather, 
could  seiS  the  ice  closely  packed  to  the  south  that  left 
no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  a  stop  was  put  to  our  pro- 
ceeding in  this  direction,  by  the  ice  butting  so  close  on 
the  shoal  coast  as  to  leave  no  chance  that  our  procuress 
along  it  would  justify  the  attempt  to  reach  Cape  Sath- 
itrst,  a  distance  of  570  miles,  during  the  rduiaining 
portiou  of  this  season ;  and  finding  this  opinion  was 
coilicided  in  by  those  officers  on  board  qualified  to 
fbffri  an  opinion  on  the  subject,^  I  determii;ed  to  lose 
n6  time  iu  communicating  with  Point  'Barrow*  but  to 


■BOOND  TBIP  or  EmiiJlPBISK  AMD  INVE8TIOATOB.     999 


attempt  the  pasBase  further  north,  in  hopes  that  the 
lane  of  water  aeen  last  year  by  the  Herald  and  Plover 
would  afford  me  an  opening  to  the  eastward.  I  there- 
fore relaetantly  proceeded  again  to  the  west,  and  turn- 
ing the  pack  eage  fifteen  miles  further  to  the  south 
than  it  was  on  the  day  after  we  left  "Wainwright  Jnlet, 
we  followed  the  edge  of  a  loose  pack  greatly  broken 
up,  until  we  reached  163®  "W.  long.,  when  it  took  a 
sudden  turn  to  the  north,  in  which  direction  we  fol- 
lowed it  until  the  morning  of  the  27th,  when  we  were 
in  latitude  73®  20',  and  found  the  pack  to  the  westward 
trending  southerly.  I  therefore  plied  to  the  eastward, 
endeavoring  to  make  way,  but  such  was  its  close  con- 
dition that  we  could  not  work,  although  we  might  have 
warped  through,  had  the  condition  of  the  ice  in  that 
direction  afforded  us  any  hope :  but  this,  I  am  sorry  to 
say,  was  not  the  case,  and,  on  the  contrary,  the  further 
we  entered,  th^  larger  the  floes  became,  leaving  us,  in 
thick  weather,  often  in  great  difficulty  where  to  fin4  A 
lane.  On  the  29th  the  thermometer  having  fallen  to 
28°,  and  there  being  no  prospect  of  our  bemg  able  to 
accomplish  any  thing  toward  the  fulfillment  of  their 
Lordships'  instructions  this  season,  I  bore  away  for 
Point  Hope,  where  I  arrived  on  the  31st,  and  found  a 
hottle  deposited  by  the  Herald,  which  informed  me 
that  it  was  intended  to  place  the  Plover  in  Grantley 
Harbor  this  season.  I  accordingly  proceeded  thither, 
with  the  view  of  taking  her  place  for  the  winter,  ana 
enabling  Commander  Moore  to  recruit  his  ship's  com- 

Cy  by  going  to  the  southward.  ^  On  my  arrival  t 
-.id  her  inside,  preparing  her.win£er  quarters,  and 
havins  examined  and  buoyed  the  bar,  I  attempted^  to 
take  this  vessel  inside,  but  failed  in  doing,  so,  owing 
to  the  chanee  of  wind  from  south  to  north  having  re- 
duced the  oepth  of  water  four  feet,  and  had  to  relieve 
the  ship  of  100  tons,  which  was  quickly  done  by  the 
opportune  arrival  of  the  Herald,  before  she  was  ^re». 
leased  from  a  very  ci'itical  position.  The  tides  being, 
irregular,  the  rise  and  fall  depending  principtilly  op 
the  wind,  and  that  wind  which  occasions  the  higheat 


m 


300 


J^<>T/> 


PKOOEESS   OF  AKOnC   DISaiV'KRT. 


n«  iffi 


\ 


water  producing  a  swisll  on  the  bar,  it  became  a  ques- 
tion wnether  a  considerable  portion  of  the  ensuing 
season  might  not  be  lost  in  getting  the  ship  out  of 
Grantley  Harbor ;  and  on  consulting  Captains  Kellet 
and  Moore,  finding  it  to  be  their  opmion,  founded  on 
the  experience  of  two  years,  that  the  whalers  coming 
from  the  south  pass  through  the  Strait  early  in  June, 
whereas  the  harbors  are  blocked  until  the  middle  of 
July,  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  I  shall  better 
perform  the  important  duty  confided  in  me  by  return- 
ing to  the  south,  and  replenishing  my  provisions,  in- 
stead of  wintering  on  the  Asiatic  Shore,  where  there 
is  not  a  prospect  of  our  being  of  the  slightest  use  to 
the  missing  expedition.  It  is  therefore  mv  intention 
to  proceed  to  Hong  Kong,  it  being  nearer  tnan  Valpa- 
raiso, and  the  cold  season  having  set  in,  my  stores  and 
provisions  will  not  be  exposed  to  the  heat  of  a  double 
passage  through  the  tropics ;  and  as  I  shall  not  leave 
until  the  Ist  of  April,  I  may  receive  any  further  in- 
structions their  Loraships  may  please  to  communicate. 

"The  Plover  has  been  stored  and  provisioned,  and 
such  of  her  crew  as  are  not  in  a  fit  state  to  contend 
with  the  rigor  of  a  further  stay  in  these  latitudes  have 
been  removed,  and  replaced  by  Captain  Kellet,  and  the 
paragraphs  referring  to  her  in  my  instructions  fulfilled. 

"1  have  directed  Commander  Moore  to  communi- 
cate annually  with  an  Island  in  St.  Lawrence  Bay,  in 
latitude  65°  38'  N.,  and  longitude  170**  43'  W.,  which 
is  much  resorted  to  by  the  whalers,  and  where  any 
communication  their  Lordships  may  be  pleased  to  send 
majr  be  deposited  bv  them,  as  they  are  not  in  the 
habit  of  cruising  on  this  side  of  the  Strait ;  and  I  have 
requested  Captain  Kellet  to  forward  to  the  Admiralty 
aU  th^  information  on  this  head  he  may  obtain  at  the 
Sandwich  Islands. 

"It  is  my  intention  to  proceed  again  to  the  north, 
and  remain  in  the  most  eligible  position  for  affording 
assistance  to  the  Investigator,  which  vessel,  having 
been  &vored  with  a  surprisini^  passage  from  the  Sand- 
wich Islands*  was  fkllen  in  with  by  the  Herald  on  the 


BEOOND  TBIF  OF  ENTEKPlCISE  AXD  IMVEBTlaATOB.     301 

81st  of  Jnly,  off  Point  Hope,  and  again  on  tlie  6th  of 
Angn8t,  by  the  Plover,  in  latitade  70®  44'  N.,  and  lon- 
gitude 159°  52'W.,  when.Bhe  was  etandins  to  the  north 
under  a  press  of  sail,  and  in  all  probability  reached 
the  vicinity  of  Point  Barrow,  fifteen  days  previous  to 
the  Enterprise,  when  Captain  M'Clnre,  having  the 
whole  season  before  him,  and  animated  with  the  de- 
termination so  vividly  expressed  in  his  letter  to  Cap- 
tain Kellett,  has  most  likely  taken  the  inshore  route, 
and  I  hope  before  this  period  reached  Cape  Bathnrst; 
but  as  he  will  be  exposed  to  the  imminent  risk  of  being 
forced  on  a  shoal  snore  and  compelled  to  take  to  his 
boats,  I  shall  not  forsake  the  coast  to  the  northward 
of  Point  Hope  until  the  season  is  so  far  advanced  as 
to  insure  their  having  taken  up  their  winter  quarters 
for  this  season. 

"I  have  received  from  my  officers  and  ship's  com- 
pany that  assistance  and  alacrity  in  the  perrormance 
of  their  duty,  which  the  noble  cause  in  which  we  are 
engaged  must  excite,  and  I  have  the  satisfaction  to  re- 
port that  (under  the  blessing  of  God)  owing  to  the 
means  their  Lordships  have  supplied  in  extra  clothing 
and  provisions,  we  are  at  present  without  a  man  on 
the  sick  list,  notwithstanding  the  lengthened  period  of 
our  voyage. 

"I  have,  &c., 

EioHABD  CoLLiNsoir,  Captain. 

"The  Secretary  of  the  Admiralty." 


*Her  Mm68ty^8  Discovery-ship  *•  Investigator^  at  sea^ 
latitude  5^  26'  iT.,  longitude  172'*  36'  TF.,  July  20. 

Sir, — As  I  have  received  instructions  from  Captain 
Oollinson,  C.  B.,  clear  and  unembarrassing,  (a  copy  of 
which  I  inclose,)  to  proceed  to  Cape  Lisbume'  in  the 
hope  of  meeting  him  in  that  vicinity,  as  he  anticipates 
being  detained  a  day  or  two  by  the  Plover  in  Kotzebne 
Sound,  it  is  unnecessary  to  ada  that  every  exertion  shall 
be  made  to  reach  that  rendezvous,  but  can  scarce  ven- 
ture to  hope  :0iat  even  under  very  tavorable.  drcum^ 


302       tt^n^     PSOOSE8S  OF  ABOriO  DI800TBB1.     '^  v  £}«;' 

stances  I  shall  be  so  fortnnato  as  to  ftoeomplifth  it  ere 
the  Enterprise  will  have  ronnded  that  eape,  from  her 
anpenor  sailing,  she  hitherto  having  beaten  ns  bj  ei^t 
da^B  to  Cape  Virffins,  and  &'om  Magellan  Strait  to  oSkn 
^W■^.-:,  It  is,  thererore,  und^r  the  probable  case  that  this 
vessel  may  ibrm  a  detached  part  of  the  expedition  that 
I  feel  it  my  duty  to  state,  tor  the  iiiformation  of  the 
Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty,  the  course 
which,  under  such  a  contingency,  I  shall  endeavor  to 
pursue)  said  hare  to  request  that  you  will  Jay  the  game 
Wore  their  Lordships/ 

^^  1.  After  parsing  Cape  Lisbume,  it  is  my  intention 
to  keep  in  the  open  water,  which,  from  the  different 
repprts  that  I  have  read,  appears  about  this  season  of 
the  year  to  make  between  the  American  coast  and  the 
main  pack  as  far  to  the  northward  as  the  130th  meridian, 
unless  a  fiivorable  opening  should  earlier  appear  in  the 
ice,  which  would  lead  me  to  infer  that  I  might  push 
P)Ore  directlj»fbr  Banka'  Land,  which  I  think  is  ot  the 
utmost  importance  to  thoroughly  examine.  In  the  event 
of  thus  far  succeeding,  and  the  season  continuing  favor- 
able for  further  operations^  it  would  be  my  anxious 
desire  to  get  to  the  northward  of  Melville  Island,  and 
res^ume  our  search  along  its  shores  and  the  islands  adja- 
cent as  long  as  the  navigation  can  be  carried  on,  and 
then  secure  for  the  winter  in  the  most  eligible  position 
which  offers. 

^'  2.  In  the  ensuing  spring,  as  soon  as  it  is  practicable 
for  traveling  parties  to  start,  I  should  dispatdi  as  many 
as  the  state  of  the  crew  will  admit  of  in  different  direc* 
tibns,  each  being  provided  with  forty  days'  provisions, 
with  directions  to  examine  minutely  all  bays,  inlets  and 
idands  toward  the  northeast,  asoending  occasionally 
Bomef  of  the  highest  points  of  land,  so  as  to  bo  enabled 
to  .obtaift  extended  views,  being  particularly  cautious  in 
their  advance  to  observe  any  indication  of  a  br^ak  up  in 
the  ice,  so  that  their  return  to  the  ship  may  be  effected 
without  hazard,  even  before  the  expenditure  of  theii 
provisions  would  otherwise  render  it  necessary. 
■^^A  Supposing  the  parties  to  have  niumM  without 


61E0OND  TSIP  OF  SNTDRPKISB  AND  jNTBKTIOATOlt.    80^ 

obtaining  any  cine  of  the  absent  Bhips,  and^e  vessel 
liberated  about  the  1st  of  August,  my  object  would  then 
be  to  push  oa  toward  Wellington  Inlet,  assuming  that 
that  cnannel  ooinmunicateB  with  the  Polar  Sea,  and 
search  both  its  shores,  unless  in  doing  so  some  indication 
ehould  be  met  with  to  show  that  parties  from  any  of 
Captain  Austin's  vessels  had  previously  done  so,  when 
I  enould  return,  and  endeavor  to  penetrate  in  the  direc- 
tion of  Jones'  Sound,  carefully  examining  every  place 
that  was  fottcticable.  Should  our  efforts  to  reach  this 
point  be  successful,  and  in  the  route  no  traces  are  dis- 
cernible of  the  long  missing  expedition,  I  should  not 
then  be  enabled  longer  to  divest  myself  of  the  feelings, 
painful  as  it  must  be  to  arrive  at  such  a  conclusion,  that 
(dl  human  aid  would  then  be  perfectly  unavailing ;  and 
therefore,  under  such  a  conviction,  I  would  think  it  my 
duty,  if  possible,  to  return  to  England,  or  at  all  events 
endeavor  to  reach  some  port  that  would  insure  that  ob- 
ject upon  the  following  year. 

*'  4.  In  the  event  ot  this  being  our  last  communica* 
tion,  X  would  request  you  to  assure  their  lordships  that 
no  apprehensions  whatever  need  be  entertained  of  our 
safety  until  the  autumn  of  1854,  as  we  have  on  board 
three  years  of  all  species  of  provisions,  commencing 
from  the  Ist  of  September  proximo,  which,  without 
much  deprivation,  may  be  made  to  extend  over  a  period 
of  four  years ;  moreover,  whatever  is  killed  by  the  hunt- 
ioff  parties,  I  intend  to  issue  in  lieu  of  the  usual  rations, 
which  will  still  further  protract  our  resources. 

'^It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  say  that  the  good 
effects  of  the  fruit  and  vegetables,  (a  large  quantity  of 
which  we  took  on  board  at  O^hu,)  are  very  perceptible 
in  the  incieased  vigor  of  the  men,  who  at  this  monient 
are  in  as  excellent  condition  as  it  is  possible  to  desire, 
and  evince  a  spirit  of  confidence  and  a  cheerfulness  of 
disposition  which  are  beyond  all  appreciation. 

^'  5.  ShoiiJid  difficulties  apparently  insurmountable  en* 
compass  our  progress,  so  as  to  render  it  a  matter  of 
doubt  whether  the  vessel  could  be  extricated,  I  should 
deem  it  expedient  in  that  case  not  to  hazard  the  Uvea 


804 


iPBOOKESS  OF  ABCmO  DiSCOViBBT.  •''^'^"*3»t 


0i  thos&^trueted  to  my  char^  after  the  winter  of  1852, 
but  iii  the  ensuing  spring  quit  the  vessel  with  sledget 
Und  boats,  and  make  the  best  of  our  way  either  to 
Pond's  Bay,  Leopold  Harbor,  the  Mackenzie,  or  for 
whalers,  according  to  circumstances. 
^  "Finally.  In  this  letter  1  have  endeavored  to  give  an 
outline  of  what  I  wish  to  accomplish,  (and  what,  under 
moderately  favorable  seasons,  appears  to  me  attainable,) 
the  carrying  out  of  which,  however,  not  resting  upon 
human  exertions,  it  is  impossible  even  to  surmise  if  any, 
or  what,  portion  may  be  successfiil.  But  my  object  in 
addressing  you  is  to  place  their  Lordships  in  possession 
of  my  intentions  up  to  the  latest  period,  so  far  as  possi- 
ble, to  relieve  their  minds  from  any  unnecessary  anxiety 
as  to  our  fate ;  and  having  done  this,  a  duty  which  is 
incumbent  from  the  deep  sympathy  expressed  by  their 
Lordships,  and  participated  in  by  all  classes  of  onr 
countrymen,  in  the  interesting  object  of  this  expedition, 
I  have  only  to  add,  that  with  the  ample  resources  which 
a  beneficent  government  and  a  generous  country  have 
placed  at  our  disposal,  (not  any  thing  that  can  add  to 
our  comfort  being  wanting,)  we  enter  upon  this  distin- 
guished service  with  a  firm  determination  to  carry  out, 
as  far  as  in  our  feeble  strength  we  are  permitted,  their 
benevolent  intentions. 

"I  have,  &c, 
"IloBEET  M'Clttee,  Commander." 


^  ^Jier  MoAesty^s  ship  ^Enterpriser 

,_  '^Oahu.  June  29, 1S50. 

*'  Mbmorandum. — ^As  soon  as  Her  Majesty's  ship  under 
your  command  is  fully  complete  with  provisions,  fuel, 
and  water,  you  will  make  the  best  of  your  way  to  Cape 
Lisbume,  keeping  a  good  look-out  for  the  Herald,  or 
casks,  and  firing  gnus  in  foggy  weather,  after  passing 
Lawrence  Bay.  The  whalers  also  may  a£Eord  you  infor- 
mation of  our  progress. 

£«  « (Should  you  obtain  no  intelligence,  you  will  under- 
stand that  I  intend  to  make  the  pack  close  to -the  Ameri- 


DISPATCMKi  FliOM  UNTUBPBISB  AND  QTVmTlOATOB.     305 

can  shoro,  and  pursue  the  first  favorable  openJuff  west 
of  the  Coast  stream,  pressing  forward  toward^l^ivillA 
Island.    In  the  event  of  meeting  land,  it  is  most  probr 
ble  that  I  would  pursue  the  southern  shore,  but  conspit 
uous  marks  will  be  erected,  if  practicable,  and  inform! 
tion  buried  at  a  ten-foot  radius. 

"  As  it  is  necessary  to  be  prepared  for  the  contin 
gencv  of  your  not  being^  able  to  follow  by  the  ice  dos 
ing  m,  or  the  severity  of  the  weather,  you  will  in  that 
case  keejp  the  Investigator  as  close  to  the  edge  of  the 
pack  as  is  consistent  with  her  safety,  and  remain  there 
uatil  the  season  compels  you  to  depart,  when  vou  will 
look  into  Kotzebue  &ound  for  the  IPlover,  or  mforma- 
tion  regarding  her  position  ;  and  having  deposited  un- 
der her  cha^e  a  twelve  month's  provisions,  you  will 
proceed  to  V  alparaiso,  replenish,  and  return  to  tho 
Strait,  bearing  in  mind  that  the  months  of  June  and 
July  are  the  most  favorable. 

"  A  letter  from  the  hydrographer  relative  to  the  vari- 
ation of  the  Compass  is  annexed ;  and  you  will  bear  in 
mind  that  the  value  of  these  observations  will  he  greatly 
enhanced  by  obtaining  the  variation  with  the  ship's 
head  at  every  second  or  fourth  point  round  tlie  com- 
pass occasional]^,  and  she  should  be  swung  for  devia- 
tion in  harbor  as  often  as  opportunity  may  offer. 

"  Should  you  not  find  the  Plover,  or  that  any  casualty 
has  happened  to  render  her  inefficient  as  a  aepot,  you 
will  taKe  her  place ;  and  if,  (as  Captain  Kellett  sup- 
poses,) Kotzebue  Sound  has  proved  too  exposed  for  a 
winter  harbor,  you  will  proceed  to  Grantley  Harbor, 
leaving  a  notice  to  that  effect  on  Chamisso  Island. 
The  attention  of  your  officers  is  to  be  called,  and  you 
will  read  to  your  ship's  company,  the  remarks  of  Sir 
J.  Eichardson  concerning  the  communication  with  the 
Esquimaux,  contained  in  the  arctic  report  received  at 
Plyraouth. 

"  Your  operations  in  the  season  1851,  cannot  be 
guided  by  me,  nor  is  there  any  occasion  to  urge  you  to 
proceed  to  the  northeast ;  yet  it  will  be  highly  desir- 
ablt>,  previous  to  entering  the  pack,  that  you  completed 


006    ^^ '^'*'"  Pft60KE8S  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERT.  ^ 

provision  from  whalers,  and  obtained  as  mnch  reindeer 
meat  a8^)8sible.  Captain  Kellett's  toarrative  will  point 
oitit  Where^  the  latter  la  to  b6  had  in  most  abundance, 
and  where  coal  can  be  picked  up  on  the  beach  ;  but 
hnsband  the  latter  article  daring  the  winter,  by  using 
all  the  drift-wood  in-yonr  power. 
'  "In  the  event  of  leaving  the  Strait  this  season,  you 
Trill  take  any  weak  or  si3kly  men  out  of  the  Plover, 
and  replace  them  from  your  crews,  affording  Com- 
mander Moore  all  the  assistance  in  your  power,  and 
leaving  with  him  Mr.  Miertsching,  the  interpreter  ;  in- 
Btructions  with  regard  to  whose  accommodations  you 
have  received,  and  will  convey  to  the  obtain  of  the 

Plover.  "ElOHAED  COLLINSOir.  w: 

^  "  To  Commander  2P  dure,  of  her  -^ 

^ ., ,  Majeaty^s  ship  *  Inveatigaior?  1 

**  Should  it  be  the  opinion  of  Coimnander  Moore  thiit 
the  services  of  the  Investigator's  ship's  company  in  ex- 
ploring parties  during  the  spring  would  be  attended 
with  material  benefit  to  the  object  of  the  expedition, 
he  will,  notwithstanding  these  orders,  detain  you  tor 
that  purpose ;  but  care  must  be  taken  that  your  effi- 
ciency as  a  sailing  vessel  is  not  crippl|4  by  the  parties 
not  returning  in  tmie  for  the  opening  of  the  sea. 

"B.  C." 


**  Her  Mojesby^a  discovery  ship  *  Investigator,^  My 
•  28,  1860.  Kotzebue  Sound,  latitude  66®  64'  M., 
V  longUudel^%''  W,  V 

"  Sir, —  I  have  the  honor  to  acquaint  you,  for  the  in- 
formation of  the  Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admi- 
rsdty,  that  to  this  date  we  have  had  a  most  excellent 
rpn.  Upon  eetting  clear  of  Oahu,  on  the  morning  of 
the  6th,  we  ahaped  a  course  direct  for  the  Aleutian 
group,  passing  them  in  172°  40'  W.,  upon  the  evening 
of  the  20th  ;  continued  our  course  with  a  fine  south- 
easterly breeze,  but  extremely  thick  and  foggy  weather, 
(which  retarded  the  best  of  our  way  being  made.)  Got 
fairly  out  of  Behring's  Strait  upon  the  evening  of  tJi© 


▼^  Va*ik<»B  of  THE  FLOtBR,  VtC 


W 


I7th,  and  ai«  now  in  a  fair  way  of  realizing  their  Lord- 
ffaips'  expectations  of  reaclting  the  iee  by  the  be^^h- 
ning  of  AngnBt,  onr  progress  wing  advanced  by  the 
fiiTorablo  circnmstanees  of  a  fine  sontherly  wind  and 
tolerably  dear  weather.  The  latter  we  have  known 
nothing  of  sinee  the  10th j  which,  1  can  assure  yon,  ren- 
dered the  navigaticm  among  the  islands  a  snbjiect  of 
much  and  deep  anxiety,  seldom  having  a  horizon  abovo 
480  yards,  that  jnst  enabled  the  datk  outline  pf  the  land 
to  be  observed  and  avoidied. 

<^  It  is  with  much  satis&ctiPn  th^t  f  j^fort  the  good 
qualities  of  this  vessel,  having  well  tried  her  in  the 
heavy  galea  experienced  dunng  five  weeks  off  Cape 
Horn,  and  in  moderate  weather  among  the  intricalbo 
navigation  of  these  islands,  where  so  much  depended 
npon  her  quick  obedience  to  the  hehn,  although  lad^ 
with  every  species  of  stores  and  pi^visions  for  upward 
of  three  years.  From  these  circumstances  I  km,  there- 
fore, fuUy  satisfied  she  is  as  thoroughly  adapted  for  this 
service  as  could  be  reasonably  Wished.  v 

^'I  have  not  seen  any  thing  of  the  Enterprisei  nor  is 
it  my  intention  to  lose  a  moment  by  waiting  on  Cape 
iJBbnme,  but  shfpll  use  my  best  endeavors  to  carry  out 
the  intentions  contained  m  n^  letted  of  the  20tn,  of 
which  I  earnestly  trust  their  Lordships  will  approve. 

'>  I  am  happy  to  be  able  to  state  that  the  whole  crew 
are  in  excellent  health  and  Bpirits,  and  eyery  thing  aa 
satisfactory  as  it  is  possible  to  desire. 

**  I  have,  &c., 
^'EoBsaT  M'CLTrttB,  Commander^, 

f*  The  Secreiarp  qf  the  Admiralty, ^\ 

VoTAGB  OF  H.  M.  S.  "  ^LOVBB,"  AHD  BoAT  ExPEDmOM 
TJin)EB  COIOCAIIDBB  PULLSN,  1848-61.  "^ 

In  the  copy  of  the  instructions  issued  from  the  Ad* 
miralty  to  lieutenant,  (now  Commander,)  Moore,  oif 
the  Plover,  dated  3d  of  January,  1848,  he  was  directed 
to  make,  the  best  of  his  way  to  Petropa,ulowskl,  toueh- 
Ing  at  Panama,  where  she  was  to  be  loked  by  H.  H. 

M* 


■* 


808 


PKOOKE88  OF  ABCnO  DISOOYKBT. 


6.  Herald,  and  afterward  both  veasels  were  to  proceed 
to  Behring's  Strait,  where  they  were  expected  to  arrive 
about  the  Ist  of  July,  and  then  push  along  the  Ameri- 
can coast,  as  £eu:  as  possible,  consistent  with  the  cer- 
tainty of  preventing  the  ships  being  beset  by  the  ice. 
The  rlover  was  then  to  be  secured  for  the  winter  in 
some  safe  and  convenient  port  from  whence  boot  par- 
ties might  be  dispatched,  and  the  Herald  was  to  return 
and  transmit,  via  Panama,  any  intelligence  necessary 
to  England.  Great  caution  was  orderea  to  be  observed 
in  communicating  with  the  natives  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Kotzebue  Sound,  should  that  quarter  be  visited,  as 
the  people  in  that  part  of  the  country  differ  in  charac- 
ter from  the  ordinary  Esquimaux,  in  being  compara- 
tively a  fierce,  i^ile,  and  suspicious  race,  well  armed 
widi  knives,  &c.,  for  offense,  and  prone  to  attack. 
They  were  uso  ordered  to  take  interpreters  or  guides 
from  a  szpall  factory  of  the  Buosian-American  Company 
in  Norton  Sound. 

The  Plover  was  si^ely  ensconced  for  the  winter  of 
1849-50  in  Kotzebue  Sound,  after  the  termination  of  a 
hard  season's  work.  She  had,  coniointly  with  the  He^ 
aid,  dis(^overed  to  the  north  of  l5eh|ing's  Strait,  two 
islands,  and  several  am)arently  disconnected  patches 
of  very  elevated  jg*ounaf  Lieut.  Pullon  had  previously 
quitted  her  off  W  ainwright  Inlet,  with  four  boats,  for 
the  purpose  of  prodecutmff  his  adventurous  voyage 
along  the  coast  to  the  mouSi  of  the  Mackenzie  Biver, 
where  he  arrived  safely  on  the  26th  of  August,  after  a 
perilous  navigation  c^tnirty-two  days,  but  had  obtained 
no  clue  or  intelligence  regarding  the  prime  object-of  his 
expedition.  At  a  later  date  he  encountered  at  Fort 
Simpson,  higher  up  the  river,  Dr.  Bae,  and  gathered 
#om  that  gentleman  that  the  party  led  by  him  down 
the  Coppermine,  with  the  view  of  crossing  over  to  Vic 
toria  or  WoUaston  Land,  had,  owing  to  the  unusual 
difficulties  created  by  the  more  than  customary  rigor  of 
the  season,  met  with  entire  failure ;  the  &rthes^  point 
attained  being  Cape  Kmsenstem. 
'^^JMat,  Pullen  is  occupied  during  the  present  year  in 


TOY-A-GE  OF  TUE  fLOYlOi,  KIO. 


ao9 


A  journey  from  the  mouth  of  the  Mackenzie  eastward, 
along  the  arctic  coast,  as  far  as  Cape  Bathurst,  and  thia 
being  successfully  accomplished,  he  purposes  attempt- 
ing to  cross  the  intervening  space  to  BanJu'  Land.  He 
ismmished  with  two  boats,  both  open. 

Lieut.  W.  H.  Hooper,  one  of  the  party,  in  a  recent 
letter  to  his  father  in  London,  writing  from  Great  Slave 
Lake,  under  date  June  27, 1850,  ^ives  some  further  de- 
tails of  their  proceedings.  Having  had  eonslderab^ 
trouble  and  a  slight  skirmish  with  some  parties  of  Es- 
quimaux, they  were  obliged  to  be  continually  on  the 
watch.  At  the  end  of  August,  the  party  entered  the 
Mackenzie  Kiver,  and  in  a  few  days  reached  one  of  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company's  posts  on  the  Peel  Kiver,  a 
branch  of  the  Mackenzie,  where  Commander  Pullen 
left  Lieut.  Hooper  and  half  the  party  to  winter,  while 
he  proceeded  mrther  up  the  river  to  a  more  important 
post  at  Fort  Simpson.  After  remaining  at  Peel's  River 
station  about  a  fortnight,  Mr.  Hooper  found  that  his 
party  could  i;iot  be  mamtained  throughout  the  winter 
there,  and  in  consequence  determined  on  following 
Capt.  Pullen,  but  was  only  able  to  reach  Fort  Norman, 
one  of  his  party  being  frost-bitten  on  the  journey. 
They  thence  made  their  way  across  to  Great  Bear  Lake, 
where  they  passed  the  winter,  subsisting  on  fish  and 
water.  Dr.  Kae  arrived  there  as  soon  as  the  ice  broke 
up,  and  the  party  proceeded  with  him  to  Fort  Simpson. 

On  the  20th  of  June,  Commander  Pullen  and  all  his 
party  left  with  the  company's  servants,  and  the  stock  of 
furs,  on  their  yay  to  Uie  sea,  to  embark  for  England, 
when  they  were  met,  on  the  26th,  by  a  canoe  wim  Ad- 
miralty dispatches,  which  caused  them  to  retrace  their 
steps ;  and  they  are  now  on  their  route  by  the  Great 
Slave  Lake  to  Fort  Simpson,  and  down  the  Mackenzie 
once  more,  to  the  Polar  Sea,  in  search  of  Sir  John 
Franklin. 

"However  grieving,"  Lieut.  Hooper  adds,  " it  is  to 
be  disappointed  of  returning  home,  yet  I  am  neverth^ 
less  delighted  to  so  again,  and  think  that  we  do  not 
hopeless^  undertake  another  search,  since  pifr  intended 


\-^ 


IttO 


Ttmiiitk  of  iiCTfO  DISOOTBBT. 


direetion  is  considered  the  most  probable  channel  foi 
finding  Xhe  missiiiff  ships  or  crews.  We  ^o  down  th« 
Mackenzie,  along  3ie  coast  eastward  to  Point  Bathurst, 
and  thence  strike  across  to  Wollaston  or  Banks'  Land. 
The  season  will,  of  course,  much  influence  our  proceed- 
ings ;  but  we  shall  probably  return  up  the  hitherto 
unexplored  river  which  runs  into  the  Arctic  Ocean 
from  Liverpool  Bay,  between  the  Coppermine  and 
Mackenzie.'' 

The  latest  official  dispatch  from  Commander  PnUen 
is  dated  Great  Slave  Lake,  June  2$th.  He  had  been 
stopped  by  the  ice,  and  intended  returning  to  Fort 
Simpson  on  the  29th.  One  of  his  boats  was  so  battered 
about  as  to  be  perfectly  useless  ;  he  intended  patching 
up  the  other,  and  was  also  to  receive  a  new  boat  be- 
longing to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Comjaany,  from  Fort 
Simpson.  He  had  dismissed  two  of  his  party,  as  they 
were  both  suffering  from  bad  health,  but  proposed  en- 
gaging, at  Fort  Good  Hope,  two  Hare  Indians  as  hunt- 
ers and  guides,  one  of  whom  had  accompanied  Messrs. 
Dease  and  Simpson  on  their  trips  of  discovery  in  183S 
and  1839.  This  would  augment  the  party  to  seventeen 
persons  in  all. 

"My  present  intentions,"  he  says,  " are  to  proceed 
down  the  Mackenzie,  along  the  coast,  to  Cape  Bathurst, 
and  then  strike  across  for  banks'  Land  ;  my  operations 
must  then,  of  course  be  guided  by  circumstances,  but  I 
shall  strenuously  endeavor  to  search  along  all  coasts  in 
that  direction  as  far  and  as  late  as  I  can  with  safety 
venture  ;  returning,  if  possible,  by  the  ^Mackenzie,  or 
by  the  Beghoola,  which  tho  Indians  speak  of  as  being 
aavigable,  as  its  head  waters  are,  (according  to  Sir  John 
Riclwrdson,)  only  a  nine-days'  passage  from  Fort  Good 
Hope ;  to  meet  which,  or  a  sinular  contingency,  I  take 
snow  shoes  and  sledges,  i&c. 

"  In  conclusion,  I  be^  to  assure  their  Lprdi^ips  of 
my  earnest  determination  to  carry  out  their  views  to 
th0  utniost  of  my  ability,  being  confident,  from  the 
eagerness  of  the  party,  that  no  pains  will  bo  spared,  no 
neplEissary  labor  avoided,  and,  oy  God's  blessing,  wo 


•YOYAQE  OF  TKB  PLOVKB,  JBtO. 


iBii 


hope  to  be  Bnocessfiil  in  discoyering  some  tidings  of  our 
gallant  countrymen,  or  even  in  restoring  them  to  their 
native  land  and  anxious  relatives." 

Mr.  Ohief  Factor  Bae  was  about  to  follow  Com- 
mander Pullen  and  his  party  from  Portage  La  Loche. 

Dr.  Kichardson  observes  that  *'  Commander  Pullen 
will  require  to  be  fully  victualed  for  at  least  120  days 
from  the  20th  of  July,  when  he  may  be  expected  to 
commence  his  sea  voyage ;  which,  for  sixteen  men,  will 
require  ^orty-five  bags  of  pemmican  of  90  lbs.  each. 
This  is  exclusive  of  a  further  supply  which  he  ought  to 
take  for  the  relief  of  any  of  Franklin's  people  he  may 
have  the  good  fortune  to  find.  After  he  leaves  the 
main-land  at  Cape  Bathurst,  he  would  hlave  no  chance 
of  killing  deer  till  he  makes  Banks'  Land,  or  some  in- 
tervening island  ;  and  he  must  provide  for  the  chance 
of  being  caught  on  the  floe  ice,  and  having  to  make  his 
way  across  by  the  very  tedious  ^rtag^,  as  fully  de- 
scribed by  Sir  W.  K  Parry  in  the  narative  of  his  most 
adventurous  boat  voyage  north  of  Smtzbergen. 

*'  Mr.  Bae  can  give  Commander  Pullen  the  idlest 
information  respecting  the  depots  of  pemmican  made 
on  the  coast. 

^^With  respect  to  Commander  PuUen's  return  from 
sea,  his  safest  plan  will  be  to  make  for  the  Mackemue ; 
but  should  circumstances  place  that  out  of  his  power, 
the  only  other  course  that  seems  to  me  to  be  practicable 
is  tor  him  to  aacend  a  large  river  which  fiEUls  into  the 
bottom  of  Liverpool  Bay,  to  the  westward  of  Cape  Ba- 
thurst This  river,  which  is  named  the  Begloola  I>e88y 
by  the  Indians,  runs  parallel  to  the  Mackenzie,  and  in 
the  latitude  of  Fort  Good  Hope,  {e^"  30'  K.,)  is  not 
above  five  or  six  days' journey  from  ihat  post.  Hare 
Indians,  belonging- to  ^ort  Good  Hope,  iilight  be  en 
gaged  to  hunt  on  the  banks  of  the  river  till  the  amval 
of  the  party.  The  navigation  of  the  river  is  unknown^ 
but  even  should  Commander  Pullen  be  compelled  to 
quit  his  boats,  his  Indian  hunters,  (of  which  he  should 
at  least  engage  two  f(^  his  sea  vo]^age,)  will  6U{4>ort 
and  guide  his  party.  Wood  and  anin^s  are  most  cer- 
tainly found  on  the  banks  of  rivers. 


3  IS  PKOGIilCfS  OF  AKCriO  DIfOOVJUUr. 

"  It  is  not  likely  that  under  any  ciroumstancM  Com. 
manuer  Pollen  should  desire  to  reach  the  Mackenzie 
by  way  of  the  Coppermine  Biver,  and  this  could  bo 
effected  only  by  a  boat  being  placed  at  Dease  River, 
for  the  transport  of  the  party  over  Great  Bear  Lake. 
This  would  reanire  to  be  arranged  previously  with 
Mr.  Kae;  ana  Commander  Pullen  should  not  be 
later  in  arriving  at  Fort  Confidence  than  the  end  of 
September." 

VOTAOE    Of    THE    "  LaDT    FrAKKLDT  **  AND  "  SoPHIA," 
GOVEBNMEMT  VeSBSLB,  UNDBB  THE  OOMMAMD  OF  Hi. 

PENjnr,  1860-61. 

A  vessel  of  280  tons,  named  the  Lady  Franklin,  fit- 
ted out  at  Aberdeen,  with  a  new  brig  as  a  tender,  built 
at  Dundee,  and  named  the  Sophia,  in  honor  of  Miss 
8.  Cracroft,  the  beloved  and  attached  niece  of  Lady 
Franklin,  and  one  of  the  most  anxious  watchers  for 
'  tidings  of  the  long  missing  adventurers,  were  purchased 
by  the  government  last  year. 

The  diarge  of  this  expedition  was  intrusted  to  Cap- 
tain Penny,  formerly  commanding  the  Advice  whaler, 
and  who  has  had  much  experience  in  the  icy  seas,  hav- 
ing been  engaged  twenty-eight  years,  since  the  age  of 
twelve,  in  the  whaling  trade,  and  in  command  of  ves- 
sels for  fourteen  vears ;  Mr.  Stewart  was  placed  in 
charge  of  the  Sophia. 

The  crew  of  the  Lady  Franklin  number  twenty-five, 
and  that  of  the  Sophia,  twenty,  all  picked  men. 

These  ships  sailed  on  the  12th  of  April,  1860,  pro- 
visioned and  stored  for  three  years.  Tney  were  pro- 
vided with  a  printing  press,  and  every  appliance  to 
relieve  the  tedmm  of  a  long  sojourn  in  the  icy  regions. 

In  the  instructions  issued  by  the  Admiralty,  it  is 

,  stated  that  in  accepting  Captain  Parry's  offer  of  service, 

Regard  has  been  had  'to  his  long  experi^ice  in  arctic 

navigation,  and  to  the  great  attention  he  has  paid  to 

the  subject  of  the  missing  ships. 

^     He  ^as  left  in  a  great  measure  to  the  ezerdse  of  his 


"i-^^'a^p-aw 


.£-i<*>i:  '^■^A.i:^; 


)/ 


TOY  AUK  OF  THB  HBBOLUTB  AlTD  AMItlTAIlOB,  ETa      818 

own  judgment  and  discretion ,  in  oombiniDg  the  moil 
active  and  energetic  search  aftor  the  Erebus  and  Terror, 
with  a  strict  and  careftil  regard  to  the  safety  of  the 
•liijM  and  their  crews  under  nis  charge.  He  was  di- 
rected to  examine  Jones'  Sound  at  tho  head  of  Baffin's 
Bay,  and  if  possible,  penetrate  through  to  the  Parry 
Islands  ;  £uHng  in  this,  he  was  to  try  Wellingtou  JStrait, 
and  endeavor  to  reach  Melville  Island.  He  was  to  use 
his  utmost  endeavors,  (consistent  with  the  safety  of  the 
lives  of  those  intrusted  to  his  command,)  to  succor,  in 
the  summer  of  1860,  the  party  under  Sir  John  Fraiik- 
iin,  taking  care  to  secure  his  winter-quarters  in  good 
time  ;  and  2dly,  the  same  active  measures  were  to  be 
used  in  the  summer  of  1851,  to  secure  the  return  of  the 
Bhips  under  his  charge  to  this  country. 

The  Lady  FranklSi  was  off  Cape  York,  in  Baffin's 
Bay,  on  the  Idth  of  August.  From  thence  she  pro- 
ceeded, in  company  with  il.  M.  S.  Assistance,  to  Wol- 
stenholme  Sound.  She  afterward,  in  accordance  with 
her  instruction^rossed  over  to  the  west  with  the  in- 
tention of  examlping  Jones'  Sound,  but;  owing  to  the 
accumulation  of  ice,  was  unable  to  approach  it  within 
twenty-five  miles.  This  was  at  midnight  on  the  18th. 
She,  therefore,  continued  her  voyage  to  Lancaster 
Sound,  and  onward  to  Wellington  Channel,  where  she 
was  seen  by  Commander  Forsyth,  of  the  Prince  Albert, 
)n  the  25th  of  August,  with  her  tender,  and  H.  H.  S. 
Assistance  in  company,  standing  toward  Cape  Hotham. 

Voyage  of  H.  M.  Ships  "  Bbsolutb  "  and  "  Assistance," 
wnn  THE  Steamers  "Pioneeb"  and  "Intrepid" 
AS  Tenders,  under  command  of  Captain  Austin, 

^^1850-51. 

Two  fine  teak-bnilt  sfeipB  of  abpnt  500  tons  each,  th 
fiaboo  and  Ptarmigan,  whose  names  were  altered  t 
the  Assistance  and  Besdute,  were  purchased  by  th 
government  in  1850,  and  sent  to  the  naval  yards  to  be 
oroperly  fitted  for  the  voyage  to  the  polar  i-egions. 

Two  screw-propeller  steamers,  intended  to  accompany 


S14      «**&       PBOGBESB  OP  AKCTIC  DISOOTEBT.    ■ ''^^^Z 


v*1 


ihese  vessels  as  steam  tenders,  were  also  purchased  and 
similarly  fitted ;  their  names  were  changed  Jfrom  the 
Eider  and  Free  Trade  to  the  Pioneer  and  Intrepid. 

The  command  of  this  expedition  was  intrasted  to 
Captain  Horatio  T.  Austin,  €.  B.,  who  was  first  Lieu- 
tenant of  the  Fury,  nnder  Commander  Hoppner,  in 
Captain  Sir  E.  Parry's  third  voyage,  in  1824-25.  The 
vessels  were  provisioned  for  three  years,  and  their  at- 
tention was  also  directed  to  the  depots  of  stores  lodged 
by  Sir  James  Boss  at  Leopold  Island,  and  at  Kavy 
Board  Inlet  bv  the  Korth  Star.  The  ships  sailed  in 
May,  1850.  The  officers  employed  in  them  were  as 
follows : — 

Eesohite. 

Captain  —  Horatio  T.  Austin,  0.  B. 
Lieutenants  —  R.  D.  Aldrich,  and  "W.  H»  J.  Browne. 
Mates  —  R.  B.  Pearse,  and  W.  M.  May^. 
Purser — J.  E.  Brooman. 
Surgeon  —  A.  R.  Bradford.  |fe 

A8s;istant,djtto— Richard  King,    w  .^ 

,    Midshipmen  —  C.  Bullock,  J.  r.  Cheyne. 
Second  Master — G.  F.  M'Dougall. 

Total  complement,  60  men.  ^ 

Pioneer,  Bcrew  Bte&mer. 

Lieut-Commandiii^ — Sherard  Osbom. 
Second  Master-^  J.  H.  Allard. 
Assistant-Surgeon  —  F.  R.  Picthom. 

Assiatanee. 
Captain — E.  Ommaney. 
Lieutenants  —  J.  E.  Elliot,  F.  L.  M'Clintock^  and 

G.  F.  Mecham. 
Surgeon  —  J.  J.  L.  Donnett.     5%,  .  ■    r  j  fb 
>-^  Assistant,  ditto — J.  Ward,  (a,). 
iP  Mates  —  R.  V.  Hamilton,  and  J.  R.  Keane. 
Clerk  in  Charge — E.  N,  Harrison. 
Second  Master — W.  B.  Shellabear, 
JC^slopman  —  C.  R.  Markham.      y  >n  -l-    \ 
^ '-'  Total  complement,  60  men. 


'•*{ 


Sf**' 


VOYAGE  OF  THE  EE80LDTE  AND  ASSISTANCE,  ETC.     315 


Intrepid,  screw  Btcamor,  , 


U».'j'4a*^«   li. 


Lieut-Commander — B.  Cator. 

0 

Each  of  the  tenders  had  a  crew  of  30  men. 

Two  ot  the  officers  appointed  to  this  expedition,  Lien- 
tenants  Browne  and  MrClintock,  were  in  the  Enterprise 
under  Captain  Sir  James  C.  Eoss  in  1848. 

The  Emma  Eugenia  transport  was  dispatched  in  ad- 
vance with  provisions  to  the  W  hale-Fish  I^ands,  to  await 
the  arrival  of  the  expedition. 

It  having  been  suggested  by  some  parties  that  Sir 
John  Franklin  might  have  effected  his  passage  to  Mel' 
vUle  Island,  and  been  detained  there  with  his  ship, 
or  that  the  ships  might  have  been  damaged  by  the  ice 
in  the  neighboring  sea,  and  that  with  his  crews  he  had 
abandoned  them  and  made  his  escape  to  that  island, 
Captain  Austin  was  specially  instructed  to  use  every 
exertion  to  reach  this  island,  detaching  a  portion  of  his 
ships  to  search  the  shores  of  Wellin^n  Channel  and 
the  coast  about  ^f^e  Walker,  to  which  point  Sir  Jolm 
Franklin  was  oi^fed  to  proceed.  # 

Advices  were  first  received  from  the  Assistance,  after 
her  departure,  dated  5th  of  July ;  she  was  then  making 
her  way  to  the  northward.  The  season  was  less  favor- 
able for  exploring  operations  than  on  many  previous 
years.  But  little  ice  had  been  met  with  in  Davis' 
Strait,  where  it  is  generally  found  in  large  quantities, 
80  that  obstacles  ot  a  serious  nature  may  be  expectea 
to  the  northward.  Penny's  ships  had  been  in  company 
with  them. 

Ice  is  an  insurmountable  barrier  to  rapid  progress ;    ' 
fortifications  may  be  breached,  but  huge  masses  of.  ice, 
200  to  600  feet  high,  are  not  to  be  overcome. 

On  the  2d  of  July  the  .Assistance  was  towed  beneath 
a  perpendicular  cliff  to  the  northward  of  Cape  Shackle- 
ton,  risine  to  the  height  pf  1500  feet,  which  was  ob-^ 
served  to  oe  crowded  with  the  foolish  guillemots,  {TJria 
troile)  When  the  ship  hooked  on  to  an  iceberg  for  the 
night,  a  party  sent  on  |hore  for  the  puq^ose  brought  off 
260  birds  and  about  tweiity  dozen  of  their  eggs.  These 
birds  only  lay  one  Qgg  eacfc ,     „^ 


816 


PROORKSS   OF   ARCnO   DISCOVERY. 


,tf» 


x*: 


The  following  official  dispatch  has  been  since  received 
from  Captain  Ommaney : — 

^Ser  McMeaty^a  ship  ^Aasistanoej  qfZancaeUr  Sound. 
latitude  76°  46'  iT.,  longitude  76°  49'  TT.,  August 
17,  1860. 

"Sib, — I  have  the  honor  to  acq^uaint  you,  for  the  in- 
formation of  the  Lords  Oommissioners  of  thd  Admi- 
ralty, Uiat  her  Majesty's  ship  Assistance,  and  her  tender, 
her  Majesty's  steam-vessel  Intrepid,  have  this  day  suc- 
ceeded in  effecting  a  passage  across  to  the  west  water, 
'  and  are  now  proceeding  to  Lancaster  Sound.  Officers 
and  crews  all  well,  with  fine  clear  weather,  and  open 
water  as  far  as  can  be  seen. 

"  Agreeably  with  instructions  received  from  Captain 
H.  Austin,  we  parted  companpr  on  the  16th  instant,  at 
one  A.  M.,  off  Cape  Dudley  Diggs,  as  the  ice  was  then 
sufficiently  open  to  anticipate  no  farther  obstruction  in 
effecting  tne  north  passage.  He  was  anxious  to  proceed 
to  Poncrs  Bay,  and  thence  take  up  the  examination  along 
the  south  shores  of  Lancaster  Sotu^d,  leaving  me  to 
ascertain  tha  truth  of  a  report  obtained  from  the  Esqui- 
maux at  Cape  York  respecting  some  ship  or  ships  hav- 
ing been  seen  near  "Wolstenholme  Island,  after  wnich  to 
proceed  to  the  north  shores  of  Lancaster  Sound  and 
•  Wellington  Channel. 

"  On  passing  Cape  York,  (the  14th  inst.,)  natives  were 
seen.  !By  the  directions  of  Captain  Austin  I  landed, 
and  communicated  with  them,  when  we  were  informed 
that  they  had  seen  a  ship  in  that  neighborhood  in  the 
spring,  and  that  she  was  housed  in.  Upon  this  intelli- 
gence I  shipped  one  of  the  natives,  who  volunteered  to 
join  us  as  interpreter  and  guide. 

"On  parting  with  Captain  Austin  we  proceeded 
toward  Wolstenholme  Island,  where  I  left  the  ship  and 
proceeded  in  her  Majesty's  steam- vessel  Intrepid  into 
'0^  W  olstenholme  Sound,  and  by  the  guidance  of  the  Esqui- 
maux, succeeded  in  finding  a  bay  about  thirteen  miles 
iUrther  in,  and  sheltered  by  a  prominent  headland.  In 
the  cairns  erected  here  we  found  a  document  stating 


u^^^. 


*:■& 


"^-T 


YOTAQS  07  TUG  BS80LUTE  A.HD  ..AS^STANCE)  ETC.  317 


(hat  the  North  Sjtar  had  wintered  in  the  bay,  a  copy 
of  which  I  hayo  the  honor  to  transmit  to  their  Lord- 
ships. 

*'  Previous  to  searching  the  spot  where  the  North  Star 
wintered.  I  examined  me  deserted  Esquimaux  settle- 
ment. At  this  s^ot  we  found  eyident  traces  of  some  ^4. 
Bhip  having  been  in  the  neighborhood,  from  empty  pre- ; 
served  meat  canisters  and  some  clothes  left  near  a  pool 
( f  water,  marked  with  the  name  of  a  corporal  belonging 
to  the  North  Star. 

"  Having  ascertained  this  satisfactory  information,  I 
returned  to  Wolstenholmo  Island,  where  a  document  was 
deposited  recording  our  proceedings.  At  6  a.  m.,  of  the 
I6th  inst,  I  rejoined  the  ship,  ana  proceeded  at  two  to 
the  westward,  and  am  happy  to  inform  you  that  the 
passage  across  has  been  made  without  obstruction,  tow- 
mg  through  loose  and  strangling  ice. 

"The  expedition  was  beset  in  Melville  Bay,  sur- 
rounded by  heavy  and  extensiye  floes  of  ice,  from  the 
nth  of  July  to  the  9th  of  August,  1850,  when,  after 
great  exertion,  i^i6lcase  was  effected,  and  we  succeeded 
m  reaching  Cape  York  by  continuinff  along  the  edge  of 
the  land-ice,  alter  which  we  have  oeen  favored  with 
plenty  of  water. 

"  Captain  Penny's  expedition  was  in  company  during 
the  most  part  of  tne  time  whi\.  in  Melyille  Bay,  and  up 
to  the  14th  inst.,  when  we  left  him  off  Cape  Dudley 
Digffs  —  all  well. 

"In  crossing  Melville  Bay  we  fell  in  with  Sir  John 
Ross  and  Captain  Forsyth's  expeditions..  These  Capt 
Austin  has  assisted  by  towing  them  toward  their  desti- 
nations. The  latter  proceeded  with  him,  and  the  former 
has  remained  with  us. 

"Having  placed  Sir  John  Ross  in  a  fair  way  of 
reaching  Lancaster  Sound,  with  a  fair  wind  and  open 
water,  his  vessel  has  been  cast  off  in  this  position.  I 
shall,  therefore,  proceed  with  all  dispatch  to  the  exami- 
nation of  the  north  shores  of  Lancaster  Sound  and 
Wellington  Channel,  according  to  Captain  Austin's  # 
directions.  '^  ..._.,._  .  - 


•■r^ 


.^^ 


818 


PBOOBE68  OF  ABOno  DSBOOVEBT. 

.:.  ;^    .';.     'If 


--'"▼ 


i'i^'X  have  the  honor  to  he,  Sir,  ybur  mosl  ohedlont 
humble  servant. 

,*' Erasmus  Ommauey,  Captain." 

The  Kesolategot  qle'ar  of  the  Orkneys  on  the  15th  of 
>         Haj,  and  arrived  with  her  consort  and  the  two  tenders 
at  the  Whale-Fish  Islands  on  the  14th  of  June. 

The  Kesohite  was  in  Possession  Bay  on  the  17th  of 
An^st.  Fix)m  thence  her  proposed  conrse  was  along 
the  coast,  northward  and  westward,  to  Whaler  Point, 
situated  at  the  southern  extremity  of  Port  Leopold,  and 
afterward  to  Melville  Island. 

In  order  to  amuse  themselves  and  their  comrades,  the 
officers  of  the  Assistance  had  started  a  MS.  newspaper, 
nnder  the  name  of  the  "  Aurora  Borealis."  Many  of 
my  readers  will  have  heard  of  the  "Cockpit  Herald," 
and  such  other  productions  of  former  days,  m  his  Majes- 
ty's fleet.  Parry,  too,  had  his  jomTial  to  beguile  the 
long  hours  of  the  tedious  arctic  winter.  ^ 

'  rhave  seen  copies  of  this  nov^^specimen  of  the 
•fourth  estate,"  dated  Baffin's  Bay,  i^fe,  1860, in  which 
there  is  a  happy  mixture  of  grave  and  gay,  prose  and 
reree ;  nnmerons  very  feir  acrostics  are  pubUed.  I 
append,  by  way  of  curiosity,  a  couple  of  extracts : — 

'  **What  insect  that  Koah  had  with  him,  were  these 
regions  named  after?- — ^The  arc-tic." 

"  To  tli§  editor  of  the  Aurora  Borealis. 

'^''SiB,-^  Haying  heard  from  an  arctic  voyager  that  he 
)ias  seen  '  crows'-nests*  in  those  icy  regions,  I  beg  to 
inquire  through  your  columns,  if  they  are  built  by  the 
crows,  {Corvus  ttntinnahulua,)  whica  Goodsir  states  to 
utter  a  metallic  belUike  croak?  My  fast  friend  begs 
me  to  inquire  when  rook  shooting  commences  in  thoee 

Riggings? 

JP.  "  A  Natueaijst. 

["  We  would  reoommend  to  *  A  Naturalist '  a  visit  to 

'■^^  these  *  crows'-nests,'  which  do  exist  in  the  arctic  regioris. 

We  would  also  advise  his  faai^  friend  to  investigate 


.•JrVa^i 


A'As 


VOYAGE  or  fttt  JOHN   B068   IN  THS  FELUL,   ETC.    319 

tttese  eaid  nesta  more  thoroughly ;  be  would  find  them 
tenanted  by  ver^  old  birds  (ioe  quartex^^nastere,)  who 
would  not  onl^  inform  him  as  to  the  species  of  crows 
and  the  sporting  season,  but  would  give  them  a  fair 
chance  of  showing  him  how  a  pigeon  may  be  plucked. 
— Editob."] 

VoYAG*  OF  Captain  Seb  John  Ross  in  the  "Felix" 

PXIYATB  SOHOONKB,  1850-51.  ri\ 

In  April,  I860,  Captain  Sir  John  Ross  having  vol- 
unteerea  his  services  to  proceed  in  the  search,  was  en- 
abled, by  the  liberality  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company, 
who  contributed  600?.,  and  public  subscription,  to  leave 
England  in  the  Felix  schooner,  of  120  tons,  with  a 
picked  crew,  and  accompanied  by  Commander  C.  Ger- 
vans  Phillips,  R.  N.  She  also  had  the  Mary,  Sir  John's 
own  yacht  of  twelve  tons,  as  a  tender.  Mr.  Abemethy 
proceeded  as  ice-master,  having  accompanied  Sir  John 
in  his  former  voyage  to  Boothia;  and  Mr.  Sivewright 
was  mate  of  the  Felix.  The  vessels  sailed  from  Scot- 
land on  the  23d  of  May,  and  reached  Holsteinborg  in 
June,  where  Captain  Ross  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  «i 
Danish  interpreter  who  understood  the  Esquimaux 
language ;  he  then  proceeded  on,  calling  at  the  Whale- 
Fish  Islands,  and  passing  northway  through  the  Way- 
gatt  Strait,  overtook,  on  the  10th  of  August,  H.  M. 
ships  Assistance  and  Resolute,  with  their  tenders  the 

Intrepid  and  Pioneer,  under  the  command  of  Captain 

Anstm.        ■  ;  ..:i4,^..  ^.     ^      .....  ... 

On  the  13th  of  August,  Captain  Ommaney  in  the 
Assistance,  and  Sir  John  Ross  in  the  Felix,  being 
somewhere  off  Cape  York,  observed  three  male  Es- 
(juimaux  on  the  ice  close  by,  and  with  these  people 
it  was  prudently  resolved  to  communicate.  Accord- 
ingly, Lieutenant  Cator  in  the  Intrepid  steamer,  tender 
to  the  Assistance,  and  Commander  Phillips  in  the 
whale-boat  of  the  Felix,  put  off  on  this  service.  The 
Intrepid's  people  arrived  firat,  but  apparently  without 
any  means  of  expressing  their  desires,  so  that  when  the 


^'^'% 


320'     ^'^    <  PROOBESS  OF  ARCnO  DISOOVBET.    '^-'^^t 

boat  of  the  Felix,  containing  an  Esquimaux  interpreter, 
joined  the  party,  the  natives  immediately  gave  signs 
of  recognition  and  satisfaction,  came  into  the  l)oat  with- 
out the  least  hesitation,  and  engaged  themselves  pre- 
sently in  a  long  and  animated  conversation  with  theit 
countryman  the  interpreter.  Half  an  hour  was  de- 
voted to  this  interchange  of  intelligence,  but  with  no 
immediate  result,  for  the  interpreter  could  only  trans- 
late his  native  language  into  Danish,  and  as  no  person 
in  the  boat  understood  Danish,  the  information  re- 
mained as  inaccessible  as  before.  In  this  predicament 
the  boats  returned  with  the  intention  of  confronting  the 
interpreter — whose  christianized  name  is  Adam  Beek 
—  with  Sir  John  Ross  himself.  As  Sir  John,  however, 
was  pushing  ahead  in  the  Felix  toward  Cape  Dudley 
Diggs,  and  as  Adam  appeared  anxious  to  disburden 
himself  of  his  newly  acquired  information,  the  boats 
dropped  on  board  the  Prince  Albert,  another  of  the 
exploring  vessels  in  the  neighborhood,  and  there  put 
Adam  in  communication  with  the  captain's  steward, 
John  Smith,  who  "  unde.*8tood  a  little  ot  the  language," 
.as  Sir  John  Ross  says,  or  "a  good  deal,"  as  Co;n- 
mander  Phillips  says,  and  who  presently  gave  such  an 
account  of  the  intelligence  as  startled  every  body  on 
board.  Its  purport  was  as  follows ; — ^That  in  the  win- 
ter of  1846,  when  the  snow  was  falling,  tw?>  ships  were 
crushed  by  the  ice  a  good  way  off  in  the  direction  of 
Cape  Dudley  Diggs,  and  afterward  buraed  by  a  fierce 
ana  numerous  tribe  of  natives ;  that  the  ships  in  ques- 
tion were  not  whalers,  and  that  epaulettes  were  worn 
by  some  of  the  white  men ;  that  a  part  of  the  crews 
were  drowned,  that  the  remainder  were  some  time  in 
huts  or  tents  apart  from  the  natives,  that  they  had  guns, 
but  no  balls,  and  that  being  in  a  weak  and  exhausted 
condition,  they  were  subsequently  killed  by  the  natives 
with  darts  or  arrows.  This  was  the  form  given  to  the 
Esquimaux  story  by  John  Smith,  captain's  stewun^  of 
the  Prince  Albert.  Impressed  with  the  importance  of 
these  tidings,  Captain  Ommaney  and  Commander 
Phillips  immediately  made  their  report  to  Captain 


VOTAOE  OF  BIB  JOHN  BOSB  IN  THB  F£LIZ,  ETC.    321 

AnBtin  in  the  Resolute,  which  was  then  in  company 
with  the  Felix  near  Cape  Dudley  Di^gs.  Captain  Aus- 
tin at  once  decided^  upon  investigating  the  credibility 
of  the  story,  and  with  this  view  dispatched  a  message 
to  the  Lady  Franklin,  another  of  the  exploring*  ships» 
which  lay  a  few  miles  off,  and  which  had  on  board  a 
regular  Danish  interpreter.  This  interpreter  duly  ar- 
rived, but  proceeded  forthwith  to  translate  the  story  by 
a  statement  "  totally  at  variance  "  with  the  interpreta- 
tion of  "  the  other,"  whom,  as  we  are  told,  he  called  a 
liar  and  intimidated  into  silence ;  though  no  sooner  was 
thp  latter  left  to  himself  than  he  again  repeated  his 
version  of  the  tale,  and  stoutly  maintained  its  accuracy. 
Meantime  an  additional  piece  of  information  became 
known,  namely,  that  a  certain  ship  had  passed  the  win- 
ter safely  housed  in  Wolstenholme  Sound  —  a  state- 
ment soon  ascertained  by  actual  investigation  to  be 
perfectly  true.  The  following  is  an  extract  of  a  letter 
from- 


Captain  Sir  John  Boss,  H.  JV.,  to  Captain  W.  A.B, 
Hamilton,  R.  N.,  Seoreta/ry  of  the  Admiralty. 

" '  Felix '  discovery  yacht,  off  Admiralty  Inlet, 
"  Lancaster  Sound,  August  22. 

"  Sir, —  I  have  to  acquaint  you,  for  the  information 
of  the  Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty,  that  the; 
Felix  discovery  yacht,  with  her  tender,  the  Mary,  after 
obtaining  an  Esquimaux  interpreter  at  Holsteinborg, 
and  calling  at  Whale-Fidh  Islands,  proceeded  north  way 
through  the  Waygatt  Straits,  and  overtook  her  Ma- 
jesty's discovery  ships,  under  the  command  of  Captain 
Austin  on  the  11th  of  August ;  and  on  the  12th  the 
senior  officer  and  the  second  in  command  having  cor- 
dially communicated  with  me  on  the  best  mode  of 
performing  the  service  on  which  we  are  mutually  em- 
barked, arrangements  were  made  and  concluded  for  a' 
simultaneous  examination  of  every  part  of  the  eastern 
side  of  a  northwest  passage  in  which  it  was  probable 
that  the  missing  ships  could  be  bound :  documents  ti 


m 


tm 


i-i'i   »iLf 


fBfJQlum  09  AaatlQ  DVOOTJCBT.  :..,^Aix-<r 


'Wtk, 


ibftt  effect  were  exchanged;  and  sabseqiieptly  assentvd 
tQ  bjr  0ai>taiii8  Foraytli  and  Fennj< 

(( On  tne  18th  of  Awwt  natlyef^  were  discovered  on 
tl^e  ice  near  to  Cape  Xotk,  with  whom  it  was  deemed 
advisable  to  communicate.  On  this  service,  Lieutenant 
Gator,  in  Uie  Intrepid,  was  detached  on  the  part  of 
Captain  Austin,  ana  on  my  part  Commander  Fhillipg, 
witn  our  Esquimaux  interpreter,  in  the  whale-boat  of 
the  Felix.  It  was  found  by  Lieutenant  Cator  that  Cap- 
tain Penny  had  left  with  the  natives  a  note  for  Captain 
Austin,  but  only  relative  to  the  state  of  the  navigation; 
however,  when  Commander  Phillips  arrived,  the  llsqui- 
maux,  seeing  ouq  apparently  of  their  own  nation  in  the 
whale-boat,  came  immediately  to  him,  when  a  long 
conversation  took  place,  the  purport  of  which  could 
not  be  made  known,  as  the  interpreter  could  not  ex- 
plain himself  to  any  one,  either  in  the  Intrepid  or  the 
whale-boat,  (as  he  understands  only  the  Banish  besides 
his  own  language,)  until  he  was  brought  on  b^d  the 
Prince  Albert,  where  John  Smith,  the  captai^  stew- 
ard of  that  vessel,  who  had  been  some  years  at  the 
Hudson's  Bay  settlement  of  Churchill,  and  imderstands 
a  little  of  the  language,  was  able  to  give  some  expla- 
nation of  Adam  Beck's  information,  which  was  deemed 
of  such  importance  that  Captains  Ommaney,  Phillips, 
and  Forsyth,  proceeded  in  the  Intrepid  to  the  Hesolnte, 
when  it  was  decided  by  Captain  Austin  to  send  for  the 
Danish  Interpreter  of  the  Lady  Franklin,  which,  hav- 
ing been  unsuccessful  in  an  attempt  at  getting  through 
the  ice  to  the  westward,  was  only  a  few  miles  distant. 
In  the  meui  time  it  was  known  that,  in  addition  to  the 
first  information,  a  shipywhich  could  only  be  the  North 
Star,  had  wintered  in  Wolstenholme  Sound,  called  by 
the  natives  C*.ii,*inak,  and  had  only  lefl  it  a  month  ago. 
This, proved  to  be  true,  but  the  interpretation  of  the 
Dane  was  totallv  at  variance  with  the  information  given 
by  the  other,  t^ho,  although  for  obvious  reasons  he  did 
not  dare  to  contradict  the  Dane,  subsequently  main- 
tained the  truth  of  his  statement,  which  induced  Cap- 
tain Austin  to  dispatch  the  Isirenid  with  Captains 


VOTAOB  OF  SIB  JOIIM   ROfiS  IN   THE  FELIX,   ETC.    828. 

'■J  9 

Onmianey  and  PhiUipa,  taking  with  them  both  onr  in- 
terpreters, Adam  Beek  and  a  young  native  who  had 
been  persuaded  to  coma  as  one  of  the  crew  of  the  As-  • 
fiistance,  to  examine  Wolstenholme  Sound.  In  th6 
mean  time  it  had  been  unanimously  decided  that  no 
alteration  should  be  made  in  our  previous  arrangement^ 
it  being  obvious  that  while  there  remained  a  chance  oi 
saving  the  lives  of  those  of  the  missing  ships  who  may 
be  yet  alive,  a  further  search  for  those  who  had  per- 
ished should  be  postponed,  and  accordingly  the  Reso- 
lute, Pioneer,  and  Prince  Albert  parted  company  on 
the  16th.  It  is  here  unnecessary  to  give  the  omcial  re- 
ports made  to  me  by  Commander  Phillips,  which  are 
of  course  transmitted  by  me  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which,  with  the  information 
written  in  the  Esquimaux  language  by  Adam  Beek, 
will  no  doubt  be  sent  to  you  for  their  Lordships'  infor- 
mation:  and  it  will  be  manifest  by  these  reports  that 
Comn|||ider  Phillips  has  performed  his  duty  with  sa- 
gacity, circumspection,  and  address,  which  do  him  in- 
finite credit,  altlibgh  it  is  only  such  as  I  must  have 
expected  from  so  intelligent  an, officer;  and  I  have 
much  satbfaction  in  adding  that  it  has  been  mainly 
owing  to  his  zeal  and  activity  that  I  ^as  able,  under 
disaovantapt'  is  circumstances,  to  overtake  her  Majes- 
ty's ships,  N^  -liie  by  his  scientific  acquirements  and  ac- 
curacy in  Borveying,  he  has  been  aole  to  make  many 
important  corrections  and  valuable  additions  to  the- 
charts  of  the  much-frequented  eastern  side  of  Baffin's, 
Bay,  which  has  been  more  closely  observed  and  navi- 
gated by  us  than  by  any  former  expedition,  and,  much 
to  my  satisfaction,  confirming  the  latitude  and  longi- 
tude of  every  headland  I  had  an  opportunity  of  laying 
down  in  the  year  1818.  .     * 

"I  have  only  to  add  that  I  have  much  satisfaction 
in  co-operating  with  her  Majesty's  expedition.^  Witl|.^ 
such  support  and  with  such  vessels  so  particularly 
adapted  for  the  service,  no  exertion  shall  be  wanting 
on  my  part.  But  I  cannot  conclude  this  letter  without 
acknowledging  my  obligations  to  Commodore  Austin 

N 


984 


PBOOBE88  OT  AWmO  OlSOOVUt 


^im^\ 


and  Oaptain  Ommaney  ibr  the  assiatance  they  have  af 
ibrded  me,  and  ibr  the  cordiality  and  conrtesy  with 
'  which  I  have  been  treated  by  these  distinguished  offi- 
cers and  others  of  the  ships  under  their  orders.  Ani- 
mated as  we  are  with  an  ardent  and  sincere  desire  to 
rescue  our  imperiled  countrymen,  I  confidently  trust 
^afr'onr  united  exertions  and  humble  endeavors  may, 
inder  a  merciful  Providence,  be  completely  succeBsful. 
"I  am,  with  truth  and  regard,  Sir,  your  faithful  and 
i>bedient  servant, 

"  John  Ross,  Captain,  R.  N." 

By  the  accounts  brought  home  by  Commander  For- 
syth from  Lancaster  Sound,  to  the  25th  of  August,  it 
is  stated  that  Sir  John  Ross,  in  the  Felix,  intended  to 
return  to  England. 

The  ice  was  at  that  period  very  heavy,  extending  all 
around  from  Leopold  Island,  at  the  entrance  o^^egent 
Inlet,  to  Cape-  Farewell,  to  ^e  westward,  so  enRb  pre- 
vent the  possibility  of  any  of  the  ves^s  pushing  on  to 
Cape  Walker.  When  the  Prince  Arrort  was  between 
Cape  Spencer  and  Cape  Innes,  in  Wellington  Channel, 
Hr.  Snow  went  at  noon  to  the  mast-he  \i,  and  saw  H, 
M.  Ship  Assistance  as  near  as  possible  within  Cape 
Hotham,  under  a  press  of  sail.  Her  tender,  the  In- 
trepid, was  not  seen,  but  was  believed  to  be  with  her. 
Oaptain  Penny,  with  his  two  ships,  the  Lady  Franklin 
ana  Sophia,  was  endeavoring  to  make  his  way  up  tho 
same  Channel,  but  It  was  reared  the  ice  would  ulti- 
mately be  too  strong  for  him,  and  that  he  would  have 
to  return  home,  leavmg  Captain  Austin's  squadron  only 
to  winter  in  the  ice. 

The  American  man-of-war  brig  Rescue  was  close  bo 
set  with  the  ice  near  Cape  Bowen. 

The  Pioneer  was  with  the  Resolute  on  the  17tb 


w 


LADY  FBAXKLIV'S  APPEAL  TO  AMUUCAJI  NATION.  Stt. 

ixEUOAJS  Sbabchiho  "ExTEDmov. —  llNnxD  Statib' 

BhIFS,  *^  AoVANCfB*'  AKO  **  RnCUB,"  UNDER  THB  OoM* 
HAND  OF  LnCTTENANT  Dx  HaTEN,  1850-51. 

In  the  spring  of  1849,  Lady  Franklin  made  a  touch 
ing  and  pathetic  appeal  to  the  feelings  of  the  American 
oation,  in  the  following  letter  to  the  President  of  the 

Republic:  — 

The  Lady  of  Sir  John  Franklin  to  the  President 

^Bedford-place^  London^  4th  Aprils  1849. 

"Sir, — I  address  myself  to  vou  as  the  head  of  a 
great  nation,  whose  power  to  help  me  I  cannot  doubt, 
and  in  whose  disposition  to  do  so  I  haye  a  confidence 
f^ich  I  trust  you  will  not  deem  presumptuous. 

^*The  name  of  my  husband.  Sir  John  Franklin,  is 
probably  not  unknown  to  you.  It  is  intimately  con- 
nected^jpith  the  northern  part  of  that  continent  of 
which  rae  American  republic  forms  so  vast  and  con- 
spicuous a  portioill  "When  I  visited  the  United  States 
three  years  ago,  among  the  many  proofe  I  received  of 
respect  and  courtesy,  there  was  none  which  touched 
and  even  surprised  me  more  tl!lin  the  appreciation 
everywhere  expressed  to  me  of  his  former  services  in 
geogi'aphical  discovery,  and  the  interest  felt  in  the  en- 
terprise in  which  he  was  then  known  to  be  engaged." 

*  »  «  «  4» 

y  v.'4  • 

[Her  ladyship  here  gives  the  details  of  the  departure 
of  the  expedition,  and  the  measures  already  taken  for 

its  relief.] 

#  *.  »  «  « 

"I  have  entered  into  these  details  with  the  view  of 
proving  that,  though  the  British  government  has  not 
lorgotten  the  duty  it  owes  to  the  brave  men  whom  it 
has  sent  on  a  perilous  service,  and  has  spent  a^  very 
large  sum  in  providing  the  means  for  their  reecue,  yet 
that,  owing  to  various  causes,  the  means  actually  ii^ 
operation  for  this  purpose  are  quite  inadequate  to  meet 
the  extreme  exigence  of  the  c«6e;   fil*,  it  mast  h# 


899 


FBOOKI88  or  ABCmO  DnOOTXBT. 


remembered,  that  the  misfting  ebipi  were  yictu«led  fov 
throe  years  only,  and  that  nearly  four  years  have  now 
elapsed,  so  that  the  suryivors  of  so  many  winters  in  the 
ice  must  be  at  the  last  extremity.  And  also,  it  must 
be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  channels  by  which  the  ships 
may  have  attempted  to  force  a  passage  to  the  westward, 
or  which  they  may  have  been  compelled,  by  adverse 
circumstances,  to  take,  are  very  numerous  and  compli- 
cated, and  that  one  or  two  ships  cannot  possibly,  in  the 
course  of  the  next  short  summer,  explore  them  all. 

^^  The  Board  of  Admiralty,  under  a  conviction  of  this 
fact,  has  been  induced  to  offer  a  reward  of  20,000/. 
sterling  to  any  ship  or  ships,  of  any  country,  or  to  any 
exploring  party  wnatever,  which  shall  render  efficient 
assistance  to  the  missing  ships,  or  their  crews,  or  to  any 
portion  of  them.  This  announcement,  which,  even  if 
the  sum  had  been  doubled  or  trebled,  would  have  met 
with  public  approbation,  comes,  however,  too  late  for 
our  whalers,  which  had  unfortunately  sailed  llbfore  it 
was  issued,  and  which,  even  if  the  |^ws  should  over* 
take  them  at  their  fishing-grounds.  He  totally  unfitted 
for  any  prolonged  adventure,  having  only  a  few  months' 
provision  on  board,  tifid  no  additional  clothing.  To  the 
American  whalers,  both  in  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific,  I 
look  with  more  hope,  as  competitors  for  the  prize,  be- 
ing well  aware  of  their  numoers  and  strength,  their 
thorough  equipment,  and  the  bold  spirit  of  enterprise 
which  animates  their  crews.  But  I  venture  to  look 
even  beyond  these.  I  am  not  without  hope  that  yon 
will  deem  it  not  unworthy  of  a  great  and  kindred  na- 
tion to  take  up  the  cause  of  humanity  which  I  plead,  in 
a  national  spirit,  and  thus  generously  make  it  your  own. 

^^  I  must  nore,  in  gratitude,  adduce  the  example  of 
the  imperial  Russian  government,  which,  as  I  am  led 
to  hope  by  his  Excellency,  the  Eussian  embassador  in 
London,  who  forwarded  a  memorial  on  the  subject,  will 
send  out  exploring  parties  this  summer,  from  the  Asiatic 
iide  of  Behrinff's  Strait,  northward,  in  search  of  the 
lost  vessels,  ft  would  be  a  noble  spectacle  to  the 
werid,  if  threi^  great  nations,  possessed  of  ^e  widest 


LADT  fllANKUll's  APPEAL  TO   AMBBIfiAW  NATION.  827 


umpires  on  the  fu^e  of  the  globe,  were  thus  to  unit* 
their  efforts  in  the  truly  christian  work  of  saving  tbeii 
perishing  fellow-men  irom  destruction. 

^*It  is  not  for  me  to  suggest  the  mo4e  in  which  such 
benevolent  efforts  might  best  be  made.  I  will  only  say, 
however,  that  if  the  conceptions  of  my  own  mind,  to 
which  I  do  not  venture  to  give  utterance,  were  realized, 
and  that  in  the  noble  competition  which  followed ,  Ame^ 
ican  seamen  had  the  good  ibrtnne  to  wrest  from  us  the 

§lory,  as  might  be  the  case,  of  solving  the  problem  of 
le  unfound  passage,  or  the  still  greater  glory  of  savins 
our  adventurous  navigators  from  a  lingering  fate  which 
the  mind  sickens  to  dwell  on,  though  I  should  in  either 
case  regret  that  it  was  not  my  own  brave  countrymen 
in  those  aeas  whose  devotion  was  thus  rewarded,  yet 
should  I  rejoice  that  it  was  to  America  we  owed  our 
restored  happiness,  and  should  be  forever  bound  to  her 
by  ties  of  iiiffectionate  gratitude. 

^^I  am  not  without  some  misgivings  while  I  thuf  ad- 
dress you.    The  intense  anxieties  of  a  wife  and  of  a 
daughter  may  hl^ve  led  me  to  press  too  earnestly  on 
your  notice  the  trials  under  which  we  are  suffering, 
(yet  not  we  only,  but  hundreds -of  others,)  and  to  pre- 
sume too  much  on  the  sympathy  which  we  are  assured 
is  felt  beyond  the  limits  of  our  own  land,    let,  if 
you  deem  this  to  be  the  case,  you  will  still  find,  I  am 
sure,  even  in  that  personal  intensity  of  feeling,  an 
excuse  for  the  fearlessness  with  which  I  have  thrown 
myself  on  your  generosity,  and  will  pardon  the  hoiu 
affe  I  thug  pay  to  your  own  high  character,  and  to  thr 
of  the  people  over  whom  you  have  the  distinction  i< 
preside.  ^'  I  have,  <&c., 

(Signed)  ^'Janb  Fsankldt.''. 

To  which  the  following  reply  was  received  : —        ' 

Mr,  Cla/yton  to  Lady  Jams  M'anMin. 

^''Department  of  State,  Washington^ 
''25th  April,  1U9. 

"Madam, — ^Your  letter  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  dated  April  4th,  1849,  has  been  received  by 


328         ^»  *'     PROOKK88   OF   AKOTIO   DI8C0VEBT.  Wli 

Ii!m,  and  ho  has  instrncted  mo  to  make  to  you  the  ful* 
lowiiiff  reply  : — 

*'  The  appeal  made  in  the  letter  with  which  you  hare 
honored  him,  is'such  as  would  strongly  enlist  the  sym 
pathy  of  the  rulers  and  the  people  of  any  portion  of 
the  civilized  world. 

"  To  the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  who  share  a 
lar^ly  in  the  emotions  which  agitate  the  public  mind 
in  your  own  country,  the  name  of  Sir  John  Franklin 
has  been  endeared  by  his  heroic  virtues,  and  the  suffer- 
ings and  sacrifices  which  he  has  encountered  for  the 
benefit  of  mankind.  The  appeal  of  his  wife  and  daugh- 
ter, in  their  distress,  has  been  borne  across  the  waters, 
asking  the  assistance  of  a  kindred  people  to  save  the 
brave  men  who  embarked  in  this  unfortunate  expedi- 
tion ;  and  the  people  of  the  United  States,  who  have 
^  watched  with  the  deepest  interest  that  hazardous  enter- 

prise, will  now  respond  to  that  appeal,  by  the  expression 
of  their  united  wishes  that  every  proper  effort  may  be 
made  by  this  government  for  the  rescue  of  your  hus- 
band and  his  companions.  h^ 

"  To  accomplish  the  objects  you  have  in  view,  the 
attention  of  American  navigators,  and  especially  of 
our  whalers,  will  be  immediately  invoked.  All  the  in- 
formation in  the  possession  of  this  government,  to 
enable  them  to  aid  in  discovering  the  missing  ships, 
relievinff  their  crews  and  restoring  them  to  their  fami- 
lies, shall  be  spread  far  and  wide  among  our  people; 
and  all  that  the  executive  government  of  the  united 
States,  in  the  exercise  of  its  constitutioual  powers,  can 
effect,  to  meet  this  requisition  on  American  enterprise, 
skill  and  bravery,  will  be  promptly  undertaken. 

"  The  hearts  of  the  American  people  will  be  deeply 
touched  by  your  elo(][uent  address  to  their  Chief  Magis- 
trate, and  they  will  join  with  you  in  an  earnest  prayer 
to  Him  whose  spirit  is  on  the  waters,  that  your  husband 
and  his  companions  may  yet  be  restored  to  their  coun- 
try aT>d  their  Mends. 

"I  have,  &c., 
-     .     (Signed)     "  Josn  M.  Cultton."^ 


LADY  KUAMKLIM  B  A1>P£AL   ¥0  AIISRICJLM  NATION.   829 


eir  conn- 


•^  A  Becond  letter  woh  also  addreBsqd  by  Lady  Franklin 
to  the  PreBident  in  tho  cIobo  of  that  year,  aflter  the  forced 
return  of  Captain  Sir  James  lloss,  trom  whose  active 
exortious  so  much  had  been  expected  -^     . 

The  Lady  of  Sir  John  Franklin  to  the  President, 
"  Spring  Gardens^  London^  IXth  Dec,  1849. 

"Sir, —  I  had  the  honor  of  addressing  myself  to 
YOU,  in  the  month  of  April  last,  in  behalt  of  my  hus- 
band, Sir  John  Franklin,  his  officers  and  crews,  who 
were  sent  by  Her  Majesty's  government,  in  the  spring 
of  1845,  on  a  maritime  expedition  for  a  discovery  of 
tho  northwest  passage,  and  who  have  never  since  been 
heard  of. 

''Their  mysterious  fate  has  excited,  I  believe,  the 
deepest  interest  throughout  the  civilized  world,  but  no- 
where more  so,  not  even  in  England  itself,  than  in  the 
United  States  of  America.  It  was  under  a  deep  con- 
viction of  this  fact,  and  with  the  humble  hope  that  an 
appeal  to  those  ^neral  sentiments  would  never  be 
made  aicogether  m  vain,  that  I  ventured  to  lay  before 
you  the  necessities  of  that  critical  period,  and  to  ask 
yon  to  take  up  the  cause  of  humanity  which  I  pleaded, 
and  c^enerously  make  it  your  own. 
^^"How  nobly  you,  sir,  and  the  American  people,' 
responded  to  that  appeal,  —  how  kindly  and  courteously 
that  response  was  conveyed  to  me, — is  known  wherever 
our  common  language  is  spoken  or  understood ;  and 
though  difficulties,  which  were  mainly  owing  to  the 
advanced  state  of  the  season,  presented  themselves  after 
your  official  announcement  had  been  made  known  to  our 
government,  and  prevented  the  immediate  execution  of 
your  intentions,  yet  the  generous  pledge  you  had  given 
was  not  altogether  withdrawn,  and  hope  still  remained 
to  me  that,  should  the  necessity  for  renewed  measures 
continue  to  exist,  I  might  look  again  across  the  waters 
.tor  the  needed  succor.  * 

"  A  period  has  now,  alas,  arrived,  when  our  dearest 
hopes  as  to  the  safe  return  of  the  discovery  ships  this 
autumn  are  finally  crushed  by  the  unexpected,  though 


880 


.*|t..i*"5 


1»R0Q11K8S  OP  Anono  DISOOVBRT. 


i*/' 


!brced  return  of  Sir/Jiime8  Ross,  without  any  tidings  of 
them,  and  also  by  the  close  of  the  arctic  season.  And 
not  only  have  no  tidings  been  brought  of  their  safety  or 
of  their  fate,  but  even  the  very  traces  of  their  course 
have  yet  to  be  discovered ;  for  such  was  the  concur- 
rence of  unfortunate  and  unusutd  circumstances  attend- 
ing the  efforts  of  the  brave  and  able  officer  alluded  to, 
that  he  was  not  able  to  reach  those  points  where  indi- 
cations of  the  course  of  discovery  ships  would  most 
probably  be  found.  And  thus,  at  the  close  of  a  second 
eeason  since  the  departure  of  the  recent  expedition  of 
search,  we  remain  in  nearly  the  same  state  ot  ignoranco 
respecting  the  missing  expedition  as  at  the  moment  of 
its  starting  from  our  shores.  And  in  the  mean  time  our 
brave  countrymen,  whether  clinging  still  to  their  ships, 
or  dispersed  m  various  directions,  have  entered  upon  a 
fifth  winter  in  those  dark  and  dreary  solitudes,  with 
^  exhausted  means  of  sustenance,  while  yet  their  expected 
succor  comes  not  I 

'^  It  is  in  the  time,  then,  of  their  greatest  peril,  in  the 
day  of  their  extremest  need,  that  I  venture,  encouraged 
by  your  former  kindness,  to  look  to  you  again  for  some 
active  efforts  which  may  come  in  aid  of  those  of  my 
own  country,  and  add  to  the  means  of  search.  Her 
Majesty's  Ministers  have  alreadv  resolved  on  sending 
an  expedition  to  Behring's  Strait,  and  doubtless  have 
other  neoessary  measures  in  contemplation,  supported 
as  they  are,  in  every  means  that  can  oe  devised  for  this 
humane  purpose,  by  the  sympathies  of  the  nation,  and 
by  the  ffenerous  solicitude  which  our  Queen  is  known 
to  feel  m  the  fate  of  her  brave  people  imperiled  in  their 
coimtrv's  service.  But,  whatever  oe  the  measures  con- 
terapUced  by  the  Admiralty,  they  cannot  be  such  as 
will  leave  no  room  or  necessity  for  more,  since  it  is 
onl  v  by  the  multiplication  of  means,  and  those  vigorous 
and  instant  ones,  that  we  can  hope,  at  this  last  stage, 
and  in  this  last  hour,  perhaps,  of  the  lost  navigators' 
existence,  to  snatch  them  from  a  dreary  grave.  And 
surely,  till  the  shores  and  seas  of  those  frozen  regionf 
have  been  swept  in  all  directions,  or  until  some  memo- 


LIKUTENANT  0^    OKN'B   BU0QE8TI0NS. 


881 


rial  be  found  to  attest  their  fate,  neither  England,  who 
Bent  them  out,  nor  even  America,  on  whose  shores  they 
have  been  launched  in  a  cause  which  has  interested  the 
world  for  cenliiHleB,  will  deem  the  question  at  rest. 

"  May  it  please  God  so  to  move  the  hearts  and  wills 
of  a  great  and  kindred  people,  and  of  their  chosen 
Chief  Magistrate,  that  they  may  join  heart  and  hand 
in  the  generous  enterprise  I  The  respect  and  admiration 
of  the  world,  which  watches  with  growing  interest  every 
niovement  of  your  great  republic,  will  toUow  the  chiv- 
alric  and  humane  endeavor,  and  the  blessing  of  them 
who  were  ready  to  perish  shall  come  to  you  1 

"  I  have,  &c., 
(Signed)  .  Jahe  Fbanklin. 

"ZTw  Excellency  the  President  of  the  United  States.^* 

In  a  very  admirable  letter  addressed  to  Lady  Frank- 
lin in  February,  1860,  by  Lieut.  Sherard  Osbom,  R.  N., 
occur  the  following  remarks  and  8u^gesti6ns,  which 
appear  to  me  so  explicit  and  valuable  that  I  publish 
them  entire: — 

^^  Great  EaUng^  Middlesex,  6th  Eehncary,  1860. 

"  My  Deas  Lady  P'banklin. — It  is  of  course  of  vital 
importance  that  the  generous  co-operation  of  the  Ameri- 
cans in  the  rescue  ot  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  crews 
be  directed  to  points  which  call  for  search,  and  at  the 
same  time  give  them  a  clear  field  for  the  exercise  of 
their  energy  and  emulation.  It  would  be  a  pity,  for 
instance,  if  they  should  be  merely  working  on  the  same 
ground  with  ourselves,  while  extensive  portions  of  the 
Arctic  Sea,  in  which  it  is  equally  probaole  the  lost  ex- 
pedition may  be  found,  should  be  left  unexamined ;  and 
none,  in  my  opinion,  offers  a  better  prospect  of  success- 
ful search  than  the  coasts  of  Eepulse  Bay,  Hecla  and 
Furv  Strait,  Committee  Bay,  Felix  Harbor,  the  estuary 
of  the  Great  Fish  River,  ind  Simpson's  Strait,  with  the 
sea  to  the  nordiwest  of  it.  My  reasons  for  saying  so 
are  as  follows ;  -— 


882 


•i'  PBOGKESS   OF  ARCTIC  DISOOVBRY. 


>  ♦*  Suppose  Sir  John  Franklin  to  hare  so  far  carried 
out  the  tenor  of  his  orders  as  to  have  penetrated  south' 
west  from  Cape  "Walker,  and  to  have  J^n  either  '  cast 
away,'  or  hopelessly  impeded  by  ice,  mA  that  either  in 
the  past  or  present  year  he  found  it  necessary  to  quit 
■his  ships,  they  being  anywhere  between  100**  and  108° 
west  longitude,  and  70°  and  73°  north  latitude.  Now, 
to  retrace  his  steps  to  Cape  Walker,  and  thence  to  Re- 
gent Inlet,  would  be  no  doubt  the  first  suggestion  that 
would  arise.  Yet  there  are  objections  to  it :  firstly,  he 
would  have  to  contend  against  the  prevailing  set  of  the 
ice,  and  currents,  and  northerly  wind  ;  secondly,  if  no 
whalers  were  found  in  Lancaster  Sound,  how  was  he 
to  support  his  large  party  in  regions  where  the  musk 
ox  or  reindeer  is  never  seen  ?  thirdly,  leaving  his 
ships  in  the  summer,  he  knew  he  could  only  reach  the 
whaling  ground  in  the  fall  of  the  year  ;  and,  in  siica 
case,  would  it  not  be  advisable  to  make  rather  tor 
the  southern  than  the  northern  limit  of  the  seas  vis- 
ited by  the  whalers  ?  fourthly,  by  edging  to  the  south 
rather  than  the  north,  Sir  John  FranBin  would  be 
falling  back  to,  rather  than  going  from,  relief,  and  in- 
crease the  probabilities  of  providmg  food  for  his  large 
party. 

"  1  do  not  believe  he  would  have  decided  on  going 
due  south,  becanse  the  lofty  land  of  Victoria  Island 
was  in  his  road,  and  when  he  did  reach  the  American 
shore,  he  would  only  attain  a  desert,  of  whose  horrors 
he  ro  doubt  retained  a  vivid  recollection  ;*  and  a 
lengthy  land  journey  of  more  than  1000  miles  to  the 
Hudson's  Bay  settlements  was  more  than  his  men  were 
capable  of. 

"  There  remains,  therefore,  but  one  route  for  Sir  John 
*1ittder  such  circumstances  to  follow ;  and  it  decidedly 
has  the  following  merits,  that  of  being  in  a  direct  line 
for  the  southern  limit  of  the  whale  fishery ;  that  of 
leading  through  a  series  of  narrow  seas  adapted  for  the 
navigation  oi  small  open  boats ;  that  of  being  the  most 
expisditious  route  by  which  to  reach  Fort  Churchill,  in 
Hudson's  Bay  ;  that  of  leading  through  a  region  visited 


UKt'T£NA»T  OfiUOJiiN  ft  SUQOISSTIOKS. 


888 


by  Esquimaux  and  migratory  animals  ;  and  this  route 
is  through  tm  ^  Strait  of  Sir  James  Boss,'  across  the 
narrow  isthmus  of  Boothia  Felix,  (which,  as  you  re- 
minded me  to-<|M|^,  was  not  supposea  to  exist  when  Sir 
John  Franklin  Wt  England,  and  has  been  since  disoov ' 
ered,)  into  the  Gulf  of  Boothia,  whe?e  he  could  either 
pass  oy  Hecla  and  Fury  Strait  into  the  fishing-ground 
of  Hudson's  Strait,  or  else  ^o  southward  down  Conunit- 
tee  Bay,  across  the  Bae  Isthmus  into  Bepulse  Bay,  and 
endeavor  from  there  to  reach  some  vessels  in  Hudson's 
JBay,  or  otherwise  Fort  Churchill. 

'^  It  is  not  unlikely  either,  that  when  Franklin  had 
got  to  the  eastern  extremity  of  James  Boss's  Strait, 
and  found  the  land  to  be  across  his  path  where  he  had 
expected  to  find  a  strait,  that  his  party  might  have  41- 
viaed,  and  the  more  active  portion  of  iheia  attempted 
to  ascend  the  Great  Fish  Biver,  where  we  have  Sir 
George  Back's  authority  for  supposing  they  would  find, 
close  to  the  arctic  shores,  abundance  of  food  in  fish, 
and  herds  of  reindeer,  <&c.,  while  the  others  traveled 
on  the  road  I  have  already  mentioned. 

"  To  search  for  them,  therefore,  on  this  line  of  retreat, 
I  should  think  highly  essential,  and  if  neglected  this 
year,  it  must  be  done  next ;  and  if  not  done  by  the 
Americans,  it  ought  to  be  done  by  us. 

"  I  therefore  suggest  the  following  plan: — Suppose 
a  well-equipped  expedition  to  leave  America  in  May, 
and  to  enter  Hudson's  Strait,  and  then  divide  into  two 
divisions.  The  first  division  mi^ht  go  northward, 
through  Fox's  Channel  to  Hecla  and  Fury  Strait,  exam 
ine  the  shores  oi  the  latter  care^ly,  deposit  provisions 
at  the  western  extreme,  erect  conspicuous  beacons,  and 
proceed  to  Melville  or  Felix  Harbor,  in  Boothia,  secure 
tbcir  vessel  or  yessels,  and  dispatch,  as  soon  as  circum^ 
stances  would  allow,  boat  parties  across  the  neck  of 
the  isthmus  into  the  western  waters.  Here  let  them 
divide,  and  one  party  proceed  through  James  Boss's 
Strait,  carefully  examimng  the  coast,  and  push  over  sea^ 
ice,  or  land,  to  the  northwest  as  far  as  possible.  The 
Other  boat  party  to  examine  the  estuary  of  1^  Greai 


# 


834 


PBOORESe  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERY. 


Fish  River,  and  thencs  proceed  westward  along  the 
coast  of  Simpson's  Strait,  and,  if  possiblfe^  examine  the 
broad  bay  formed  between  it  and  Dease's  Strait. 

"The  second  division,  on  partin^fbmpany,  mighi 
pass  south  of  Southampton  Island,  anacoast  along  from 
Chesterfield  Inlet  northward  to  Repulse  Bay,  a  boat 
party  with  two  boats  might  cross  Rae  Isthmus  into  the 
bottom  of  Committee  Bay,  with  instructions  to  visit 
both  shores  of  the  said  bay,  and  to  rendezvous  at  the 
western  entrance  of  Hecla  and  Fury  Strait.  The  sec- 
ond division  (be  it  one  or  more  vessels)  should  then 
pass  into  Fox's  Channel,  and  turning  through  Hecla 
and  Fury  Strait,  pick  up  the  boats  at  the  rendezvous ; 
and  thence,  if  the  first  division  have  passed  on  all  right, 
and  do  not  require  reinforcement,  the  second  division 
should  steer  northward  along  the  unknown  coast,  ex- 
tending as  far  as  Cape  Kater ;  from  Cape  Kater  pro- 
ceed to  Leopold  Island,  and  having  secured  their  snips 
there,  dispatch  boat  or  traveling  parties  in  a  direction 
southwest  from  Cape  Rennell,  in  North  Somerset,  be- 
ing in  a  parallel  line  to  the  line  of  search  we  shall 
adopt  from  Cape  Walker,  and  at  the  same  time  it  will 
traverse  the  unknown  sea  beyond  the  Islands  lately 
observed  by  Captain  Sir  James  Ross.  ■ 

"Some  such  plan  as  this  would,  I  think,  insuie  yom 
gallant  husband  being  met  or  assisted,  should  he  be  to 
tiie  south  or  the  west  of  Cape  "Walker,  and  attempt  to 
return  by  a  southeast  course,  a  direction  which,  I  think, 
others  as  well  as  myself  would  agree  in  thinking  a  very 
rational  and  probable  one. 

"I  will  next  speak  of  an  argument  which  has  been 
brought  forward  in  consequence  of  no  traces  of  the 
missing  expedition  having  been  discovered  in  Lancas- 
ter Sound ;  that  it  is  quite  possible,  if  Franklin  failed 
in  getting  through  the  middle  ice  from  Melville  Bay  to 
Lancaster  Sound,  that,  sooner  than  disappoint  public 
anxiet}'  and  expectation  of  a  profitable  result  arising 
from  his  expedition,  he  may  have  turned  northward, 
and  gone  up  Smith's  Sound ;  every  mile  beyond  its  en« 
^panod  was  new  ground,  and  thei^efope  a  reward  to  th* 


I#^ 


.#*l»^    DEBATE  IN  COKGSEai^ 


t'^+S 


885 


discoverer.  It  likewise  brought  them  nearer  the  pole, 
and  may  be  the}*^  found  that  open  sea  of  which  Baron 
Wrangel  8peakaj|0  constantly  m  his  journeys  over  the 
ico  northward  frem  Siberia. 

^^It  is  therefore  desirable  that  some  vessels  should 
carefully  examine  the  entrance  of  this,  sound,  and  visit 
all  the  conspicuous  headlands  for  some  considerable 
distance  within  it ;  for  it  ought  to  be  borne  in  mind, 
that  localities  perfectly  accessible  for  the  purpose  of 
erecting  beaoons,  &c.,  one  season,  may  be  quite  im- 
practicable the  next,  and  Franklin,  late  in  the  season 
and  pressed  for  time,  would  not  have  wasted  time,  scal- 
ing bergs  to  reach  the  shore  and  pile  up  cairns,^' of 
which,  in  all  the  sanguine  hope  of  success,  ne  could  not 
have  foreseen  the  necessity. 

"  Should  any  clue  be  found  to  the  lost  expedition  in 
this  direction,  to  follow  it  up  would,  of  course,  be  the 
duty  of  the  relieving  party,  and  every  thing  would  de- 
pend necessarily  upon  the  judarmentof  the  commanders. 

^4n  connection  with  this  Tine  of  search,  I  think  & 
small  division  of  vessels,  starting  from  Spitzbergen,  and 
pushing  from  it  in  a  northwest  direction,  might  be  of 
great  service ;  for  on  reference  to  the  chart,  it  will  be 
Been  that  Spitzbergen  is  as  near  the  probable  position 
of  Franklin  (if  he  went  north  about,)  on  the  east,  as 
Behring's  Strait  is  upon  the  west ;  and  the  probability 
of  reaching  the  meridian  of  80°  west  from  Spitzbergen 
is  equally  as  good  as,  if  not  better  than,  Behring's  Strait, 
and,  moreover,  a  country  capable  of  supporting  life 
always  in  the  rear  to  fall  b^ck  upon. 

**  Sherabd  OsRQBir, 
"Lieutenant  Royal  Navy. 

"To  Lady  Franklin.^' 

Debate  or  thb  Amsbioan  Conobess. 

The  following  remarks  of  honorable  members  and 
senators,  in  defense  of  the  bill  for  carrying  out  Mr. 
GrinnelPs  expedition,  will  explain  the  grounds  on  'v^hich 
the  government  countenance  was  invoked  for  the  noblo 
undertaking:  — 


V- 


■■«  lSKTOR"5«"'V-«^   . 


886 


PKOOKKSS  OF   ABCriO  DISCOVERY. 


f  "Mr.  MiLLEB :  I  prefer  that  the  government  should 
liave  the  entire  control  of  this  enterprise  ;  but,  Sir,  I 
do  not  think  that  can  be  accomplished  ;  at  all  events,  it 
cannot  within  the  time  required  tof^roduce  the  good 
results  which  are  to  be  hoped  from  this  expedition.  It 
is  well  known  to  all  that  the  uncertain  fate  of  Sir  John 
Franklin  and  his  companions  has  attracted  the  attention 
and  called  forth  the  sympathies  of  the  civilized  world. 
Ttns  government,  Sir,  has  been  indifferent  to  the  call. 
An  application,  an  appeal  was  made  to  tjiis  government 
of  no  ordinary  character;  one  which  was  cheerfuUji 
entertained  by  the  President,  and  which  he  was  anxioui 
sl|Ould  be  complied  with.  But  it  is  known  to  the  coun 
tr;^  and  to  the  Senate  that,  although  the  President  had 
every  disposition  to  send  out  an  expedition  in  search 
of  Sir  John  Franklin,  it  was  found  upon  inquiry  that 
we  had  no. ships  fitted  for  the  occasion,  and  thdt  the 
Executive  had  no  authority  to  procure  them  for  an  ex- 
pedition of  this  kind,  and  suitable  for  this  sort  of  navi- 
gation. The  Executive  was  therefore  obliged,  for  want 
of  authority  to  build  the  ships,  to  forego  further  action 
on  this  noble  enterprise,  until  Congress  should  meet, 
and  authorize  the  expedition. 

"In  the  mean  time,  Mr.  Grinnell,  one  of  the  mo8t 
respectable  and  worthy  merchants  of  the  city  of  New 
York,  understanding  the  difficulty  that  the  government 
had  in  fitting  out  the  expedition,  has  gone  to  work,  and 
with  his  own  means  has  built  t^o  small  vessels  espe- 
cially prepared  for  the  expedition ;  and  he  now  most 
generously  tenders  them  to  the  government,  not  to  be 
under  his  own  control,  but  the  control  of  the  govern- 
ment, and  to  be  ma.de  part  of  the  navy  of  the  United 
States.  The  honorable  senator  from  Alabama  (Mr. 
King)  is  mistaken  with  regard  to  the  terms  and  effect 
of  this  resolution.  This  resolution  places  these  two 
ships  under  the  control  of  the  government,  as  mnch 
so  as  if  they  were  built  expressly  for  the  navy  of  the 
United  States.  Their  direction,  their  fitting  out,  theii 
officers  and  m^^n,  are  all  to  be  under  the  control  of 
the  Executive.    Their  o  "ficers  are  to  be  officers  of  onf 


m 


my 


rt^T.     UKBATK   IN  CONOBHSB.       *»'! 


387 


navy  —  their  seamen  the  seamen  of  our  navy  —  so  tbat 
the  expedition  will  be  as  thoroughly  under  the  control  of 
this  government  as  if  the  ships  belonged  to  us.  Now, 
Sir,  I  should  have  no  objecti'^-':  myself  to  amend  this 
resolution  so  as  to  authorize  ine  purchase  of  these  two 
small  vessels  at  once,  and  make  them  a  pai't  of  our  ni> 
val  establishment ;  but,  when  I  recollect  the  magnani- 
mous feeling  which  urged  this  noble-hearted  merchant 
to  prepare  these  ships,  I  know  that  that  same  feeling 
would  forbid  him  to  make  merchandise  of  that  which 
be  has  devoted  to  humanity.  He  offers  them  for  this 
great  cause  ;  they  are  his  property,  prepared  for  this 
enterprise,  and  he  offers  them  to  ns  to  be  used  by  the 
government  in  this  great  undertaking.  We  must  either 
accept  them  for  the  purpose  to  which  he  has  dedicated 
tbein,  or  reject  them  altogether.  If  we  refuse  these 
ships,  we  will  defeat  the  whole  enterprise,  and  lose  all 
opportunity  of  participation  in  a  work  of  humanity 
which  now  commands  the  attention  of  the  world. 

"  If  we  refer  this  resolution  back  to  the  committee, 
aud  they  report  a^^l  authorizing  government  to  build 
ships  to  carry  on  the  expedition  on  its  OW71  account,  it 
would  be  attended  with  very  great  delay,  and,  in  my 
opinion  defeat  the  object  we  have  in  vieW.  In  a  case 
of  this  kind  time  is  every  thing.  It  must  be  done  speed- 
ily, if  done  at  aU.  Every  hour's  delay  may  be  worth 
the  life  of  a  man.  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  compan- 
ions may  ere  this  have  perished,  but  our  hope  is  that 
they  are  still  living  in  some  narrow  sea,  imprisoned  by 
walls  of  ice,  where  our  succor  may  jet  reach  them. 
But,  Sir,  whether  our  hopes  are  fitllacious  or  not,  the 
public  feeling — the  feeling  of  humanity — is,  that  thfe 
late  of  Sir  John  Franklin  should,  if  possible,  be  ascer- 
tained, and  as  soon  as  possible^  The  public  mind  will 
never  be  satisfied  till  an  expedition  from  this  country, 
or  from  some  other  country,  shall  have  ascertained  their 
fate.  I  therefore  trust  that  this  resolution,  as  it  is,  will 
be  acted  upon  at  once,  and  that  it  will  receive  tho 
tmauimous  vote  of  the  Senate.    ^^  ^*  *  *  t  t^s*  s  :>% 

^I  am  so  impressed  Mr.  President,  with  the  impor" 


a88 


PU0OBK88  OF  AUCIIO   DIdCOVEKT. 


tanco  of  time  as  regards  the  disposal  of  this  qoestion, 
that  I  hesitate  even  to  occupy  the  attention  of  tho 
Senate  for  a  few  moments ;  and  I  only  do  so  for  the 
purpose  of  correcting  some  views  which  have  been  ex- 
pressed by  the  senator  from  Mississippi.  *  *  *  The 
question  is,  whether  we  shall  adopt  this  resolution,  and 
immediately  send  forth  this  expedition  for  the  purpose 
of  accomplishing  this  ^reat  object,  or  whether  we  shall 
throw  back  this  resolution  to  drag  its  slow  course 
through  Congress,  in  the  form  of  another  bill,  to  make 
an  appropriation  for  the  purpose  of  building  vcseeU. 
For  wnat  object?  To  secure,  as  tho  senator  says,  to  the 
United  States,  the  sole  honor  and  glory  of  this  expedi- 
tion. Sir,  if  this  expedition  is  got  up  merely  for  honor 
and  glory  either  to  the  United  States  or  to  an  individual, 
I  will  have  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  it.  Sii,  there 
is  a  deeper  and  a  higher  sentiment  that  has  induced  the 
action  of  Congress  on  this  subject.  It  is  to  engage  in 
a  great  work  of  humanity,  to  do  that  which  is  not  only 
being  done  by  the  government  of  England,  but  by  pri- 
vate individuals,  who  are  fitting  out#xpeditions  at  their 
own  expense,  and  sending  them  to  the  northern  seas, 
for  the  purpose  of  discovering  the  fate  of  this  great 
man,  who  a&d  periled  his  life  m  the  cause  of  science 
and  of  commerce. 

"  Mr  President,  I  have  been  informed  that  a  private 
expedition  is  now  being  fitted  out  in  England  under  the 
direction  of  that  great  commander,  or  I  may  call  him 
the  king  of  the  Polar  Seas,  Sir  John  Boss,  who  is  going 
again  to  devote  himself  and  his  life  to  this  perilous  ex- 
pedition. Sir,  altogether  I  have  not  had  heretofore 
much  confidence  in  the  success  of  this  expedition,  yet 
when  I  consider  the  reputation  of  Sir  John  Eoss,  and 
the  fact  that  he  is  better  acquainted  with  those  seas 
than  any  other  man  living,  and  understanding  that  he 
entertains  the  belief  that  Sir  John  Franklin  and  hi? 
companions  are  yet  alive,  and  may  be  rescued,  —  I  say, 
finding  such  a  man  as  Sir  John  Koss  engaged  in  an  ex- 
pedition of  this  kind,  I  am  not  without  nope  that  our 
ftfforts  may,  under  Providence,  be  crowned  with  success. 


DKBATE  IN  CONOREBB. 


SI 


839 


But  tho  honorable  senator  sajs  that  nothing  is  likely  to 
be  derived  from  thie  expedition  but  honor  and  glory, 
and  that  that  is  to  be  divided  between  the  government 
of  the  United  States  and  a  private  individual.    Sir,  is 
there  nothing  to  be  derived  from  the  performance  of  an 
act  of  humanity  but  honor  and  glory  ?    Sir,  it  is  said 
that  in  this  instance  both  the  {government  and- the  indi 
yidual  alluded  to  are  engaged  m  the  same  work.    Well 
Sir,  what  objection  can  there  be  to  that  connection 
Does  the  honorable  senator  from  Mississippi  envy  the 
individual  his  share  of  the  honor  and  glory  ?    Does  he 
desire  to  monopolize  it  all  to  the  United  States  ?    I  hope 
he  has  no  such  feeling  as  that. 

^' But,  Mr.  President,  the  honorable  senator  made  use 
of  an  expression  which  I  think  he  will  withdraw.  He 
intimated,  if  I  understood  him  rightly,  some  suspicion 
that  this  was  a  matter  of  speculation  on  the  part  of  Mr. 
Grinnell.  - 

^Mr.  Foote:  I  said  I  had  heard  such  a  thing  sug  ' 
gested  ;  but  I  do  not  make  any  such  charge  myself. 

"  Mr.  M  XLEB :  I  bave  heard  this  urged  as  an  objec- 
tion heretoibre,  bllt  I  am  satisfied  that  if  the  senator 
from  Mississippi  knew  the  character  and  the  history  of 
iMs  gentleman,  he  would  not  even  repeat  that  he  bad 
heard  such  an  insinuation.  Sir,  altnough  this  is  a 
liberal  donation  from  an  individual,  the  sum  need  not 
alarm  gentlemen  about  after  claims.  These  ships  are 
but  small  ships ;  and  it  is  necessary  that  they  should  be 
small  in  order  that  they  may  be  ef^ctive.  One  of  them 
is,  I  understand,  150  tons,  and  the  other  90  tons.  They 
hav^e  cost,  I  believe,  30,000  dollars.  Now,  when  we 
find  this  merchant  devoting  his  property,  not  for  the 
purpose  of  building  ships  to  convey  merchandise  to  the 
markets  of  the  woSld  ;  when  we  find  him  retiring  from 
the  ordinary  course  of  commercial  pursuit  in  which  all 
tho  world  IS  engaged,  and  devoting  a  portion  of  his 
fortune  to  the  building  of  ships  that  can  be  used  for  no 
other  purpose  but  in  this  voyage  of  humanity,  can  it  be 
imagined  that  any  thought  ot  speculation  on  his  }>art 
could  have  influenced  his  conduct?    No,  Sir.    On  the 


m 


840 


PBOOOSBS   OV  AHOTIO  DI800VKBY. 


contrary,  it  is  a  high  and  worthy  motive  ;  and  I  think 

it  ought  to  receive  the  ai)probation  of  this  and  all  otber 

intelugent  Christian  nations,  to  see  a  merchant,  who, 

^hile   the  commercial  world  are  encompassing  the 

globe  bv  sea  and  land  in  quest  of  ])rofit  ana  of  gold,  is 
edicatm^  himself  to  his  great  obiect,  and  devoting  n 
part  of  his  fortune  to  the  cause  of  humanity,  and  otfer- 
ing  to  government,  not  as  a  bounty,  but  because  the 
government,  with  all  its  means,  has  not  the  power  and 
tiie  time  to  prepare  vessels  to  do  this  work.  That,  Sir, 
is  the  object. 

"  Now,  if  we  do  not  accept  these  ships,  there  will  be 
an  end  of  this  expedition.  Sir,  shall  it  be  said,  that 
this  government  has  lost  such  an  opportunitv  as  this  of 
exhibiting  the  deep  interest  which  our  people  feel  both 
in  the  cause  of  science  and  humanity,  and  that,  too,  at 
%  the  very  time  when  we  are  entering  into  treaties  and  com- 
pacts with  all  the  commercial  nations  of  the  world,  for 
.  the  purpose  of  extending  commerce  and  civilizatioD, 
and  opening  communications  of  ti  ade  from  sea  to  seal 
When  the  government  is  not  only  doing  all  by  its  own 
power,  but  also  acting  in  concert  wUh  our  pnvate  citi- 
zens in  constructing  rail-roads  and  canals,  and  by  vari- 
ous other  modes  extending  commercial  civilization 
throughout  the  world,  shall  it  be  said  that  we,  at  this 
moment,  refused,  through  th^  fear  of  losing  a  little 
honor  and  glory  and  national  dignity,  to  accept  two 
ships  —  the  only  two  ships  in  America  that  can  do  the 
work — in  the  accomplishment  of  this  great  enterprise? 
I  hope  not.  Let  us  not,  then,  cavil  and  waste  time 
about  these  little  matters.  If  the  work  is  to  be  done 
at  all  it  must  be  done  now,  and  done,  as  I  conceive,  by 
the  adoption  of  this  resolution. 

QovERNOE  Sewabd  spoko  as  follows  in  the  Senate 
on  the  same  subject :  —  "I  am  happy  to  perceive,  Mr. 
President,  indications  all  around  the  chamber  that  there 
is  no^  disagreement  in  regard  to  the  importance,  or  in 
relation  to  the  propriety,  of  a  search  on  the  part  of  this 
nation,  by  the  government  itself,  or  by  individual  citi- 
zens, for  the  lost  and  heroic  navigator.    Since  so  much 


CKllATB  IN   QONOiUCM. 


841 


fg  conceded,  and  einoe  I  come  fVom  the  State  whence 
this  propofiitlon  emanates,  I  desire  to  notice,  in  a  very 
few  words,  the  objections  raised  against  the  mode  of 
carrying  tne  proposed  design  into  eifect.  It  is  always 
the  case,  I  thmk,  when  great  objects  and  great  enter- 
prises which  are  feasible  are  hindered  or  defeated,  that 
they  are  hindered  or  defeated,  not  so  much  by  want  of 
agreement  concerning  the  measures  themselvee,  as  by 
diversity  of  opinion  concerning  the  mode  of  carrying 
them  into  execution.  Since  this  is  so  generally  the 
case,  the  rule  which  I  always  adopt,  and  which  seems 
to  be  a  safe  one,  is,  that  where  I  cannot  have  my  own 
way  of  obtaining  a  great  public  object,  I  will  accept 
the  best  other  way  which  opens  before  me.  Now,  I 
cordially  agree  with  those  honorable  Senators  who 
would  have  preferred  that  at  some  appropriate  time, 
aud  in  some  proper  and  unobjectionable  manner,  the 
government  should  have  moved  for  the  attainment  of 
this  object,  as  a  government,  and  have  made  it  exclu- 
sTvely  the  act  of  the  nation.  And  I  would  have  pre- 
ferred this,  not  so  much  on  account  of  the  glory  that  it 
is  supposed  would  have  followed  it,  as  because  of  tlie 
beneficence  of  the  enterprise.  Enterprises  which 
spring  from  a  desice  of  glory  are  very  apt  to  end  in 
disappointment.  True  national  glory  is  always  safely 
attained  by  prosecuting  beneficent  designs,  whatever 
may  be  their  success.  I  say.  Sir,  then,  that  I  would 
have  preferred  the  alternative  suggested;  but  the  fact 
is,  without  stopping  to  inquire  where  the  fault  lies,  or 
whether  there  be  fault  at  all,  the  government  has  not 
moved,  and  the  reason  which  has  been  assigned  is,  I 
have  no  doubt,  the  true  one.  I  do  not  know  that  it 
has  ever  been  contradicted  or  called  in  question ;  that 
reason  is,  that  the  Navy  of  the  United  States  contains 
no  vessels  adapted  to  the  enterprise,  but  consists  of 
ships  constructed  and  fitted  for  very  different  objects 
ana  purposes  than  an  exploring  expedition  amid  the 
ice-bound  seas  oi  the  arctic  pole.  Our  naval  marine 
consists  of  vessels  adapted  to  the  purposes  of  convoys, 
military  armament,  and  the  suppression  of  the  slave* 


#■ 


a4S 


PROOBSSS  OF  AlUJTIO  DMOOVBBT. 


trade  on  the  coast  of  Africa.  The  execndve  portions 
of  the  government  failed  for  want  of  ressels  suitable 
to  be  employed  in  this  particular  service.  It  therefore 
devolved  upon  the  Legislatuia  of  the  United  States. 
But,  although  we  have  been  here  now  nearly  ^ve 
months,  no  Committee  of  either  House,  no  member  of 
either  House  of  Congress  has  proposed  to  equip  a  na- 
tional fleet  for  this  purpose.  While  this  fact  exists  on 
one  side,  it  is  to  be  remarked  on  the  other,  that  the 
time  has  arrived  in  which  the  movement  must  be  made 
if  it  is  to  be  made  at  all,  and  also  that  a  careful  inves- 
tigation, made  by  soientiiio  and  practical  men,  has  re- 
vived the  hope  in  £urope  and  America  that  the  humane 
object  can  bo  mttained.  There  can,  then,  be  no  delay 
allowed  for  considering  whether  the  manner  for  carry- 
ing the  design  into  efiSct  could  not  be  changed.  Let 
ns,  then,  practically  survey  the  case  as  it  comes  before 
ns.  The  government  of  the  United  States  has  really 
no  vessels  adapted  to  the  purpose.  To  say  nothing  of 
the  expense,  tne  government  has  not  time  to  provide, 
prepare,  or  equip  vessels  for  the  expedition.  Under 
auch  circumstances,  a  citizen  of  the  United  States 
tendera  to  the  government  vessels  of  his  own,  precisely 
adequate  in  number,  and  exactly  fitted  in  construction 
and  equipment,  ibr  the  performance  of  the  duty  to  be 
assumed.  Since  he  oflers  them  to  the  government, 
what  reason  can  we  assign  for  refusing  them?  Ko 
reason  can  be  assigned,  except  that  he  is  too  generous. 
and  offers  to  gioe  us  the  use  of  the  vessels  instead  ot 
demanding  compensation  for  it.  Well,  Sir,  if  we  do 
accept  them  it  can  be  immediately  carried  into  execu- 
tion, with  a  cheering  prospect  of  attaining  the  great 
object  which  the  United  States  and  the  civilized  world 
have  such  deep  interest  in  securing.  Then  the  ques- 
tion resolves  itself  into  this  —  the  question  raised  by 
the  honorable  Senator  from  Alabama  (Mr.  King)^ 
whether,  in  seeking  so  beneficent  an  object,  it  is  con- 
sistent with  the  dignity  of  the  nation  to  combine  indi- 
vidual action  with  a  national  enterprise.  I  do  not 
^ink,  Mr.  President,  that  that  honorable  Senator  will 


* 


I   ^  ■ 


^jji^ 


OKUATK   IN   COMOBEM. 


848 


Bnd  himsolf  obliged  to  insist  upon  this  objection  after; 
he  ehall  have  carefully  examined  the  bill  before  us 
He  will  find  that  it  converts  the  undertaking  into  a 
national  enterprise.  The  vessels  are  to  be  accepted 
not  as  individiial  property,  but  as  national  vessels. 
They  will  absolutely  cease  to  be  under  the  direction, 
management,  or  control  of  the  owners,  and  will  become 
at  once  national  ships,  and  for  the  time,  at  least,  and 
for  all  the  purposes  of  the  expedition,  a  part  of  the 
national  marine. 

^Now,  Sir,  have  we  not  postal  arrangements  with 
various  foreign  countries  earned  into  effect  in  the  same 
way,  and  is  tne  dignity  of  the  nation  compromised  by 
thorn  ?  During  the  war  with  Mexico,  the  government 
continually  hired  ships  and  steamboats  from  citizens  foi 
military  operations.  Is  the  glor  v  of  that  war  tarnished 
uy  the  use  of  those  means  ?  The  government  in  this 
case,  as  in  those  cases,  is  in  no  sense  a  partner.  It 
assumes  the  whole  control  of  the  vessels,  and  the  enter- 
prise becomes  a  national  one.  The  only .  circumstance 
remaining  to  be  considered  is,  whether  the  government 
can  accept  the  loan  of  the  service  of  the  vessels  without 
making  compensation.  I^ow,  Sir,  I  should  not  have  had 
the  least  objection,  and,  indeed,  it  would  have  been 
more  agreeable  to  me  if  the  government  could  have 
made  an  arrangement  to  have  paid  a  compensation. 
But  I  hold  it  to  be  quite  unnecessary  in  the  present 
case  because  the  character  of  the  person  who  tenders 
these  vessels,  and  the  circumstances  and  manner  of  the 
whole  transaction,  show  that  it  is  not  a  speculation.^ 
No  compensation  is  wanted.  It  would  only  be  a  cere- 
mony on  the  part  of  the  government  to  oflrer  it,  and  a 
ceremony  on  the  part  of  the  merchant  to  decline  it.  I 
am,  therefore,  wilting  to  march  directly  to  the  object, 
and  to  assume  that  these  ceremonies  have  been  duly 
performed,  that  the  government  has  offered  to  pay,  and 
the  noble-spirited  merchant  declined  to  receive. 

"  Now,  tncn,  is  there  any  thing  derogatory  from  the 
dignity  and  independence  of  this  nation  in  employing 
theveasels?    Certainly  not,  since  that  employment 


■I: 


rm^^ 


^m' 


PK()GKEfl6  OF  ABCTIC   DISCOVERY. 


indispensable.  If  it  were  not  indi8i)6n8ab1e  I  do  not 
tbink  that  the  dignity  of  the  Republic  wonld  bo  im- 
paired  ;  I  think,  on  the  contrary,  tliat  it  would  bo  en- 
hanced and  elevated.  It  is  a  transaction  worthy  of  tlio 
nation,  a  spectade  deserving  the  contemplation  and 
respect  of  mankind,  to  see  that  not  oilly  docs  tlio  nation 
prosecute,  bht  that  it  has  citizens  able. and  willing  to 
contribute,  voluntarily  and  witboiit  compulsion,  to  an 
enterprise  so  interesting  to  the  cause  of  science  and  of 
humanity.  It  is  indeed  a  new  and  distinct  cause  for 
nalional  pride,  that  an  individual  citizen,  not  a  merchant 
ptittce,  as  he  would  be  called  in  some  other  countries, 
but  a  republicati  merchant,  comes  forward  in  tbis  way 
and  moves  the  govemjnent  and  co-operates  with  it.  It 
illustrates  the  magnanimity  of  the  nation  and  of  the 
citizen.  Sir,  there  is  nothing  objectionable  in  this '|  fea- 
ture of  the  "bransaction.  It  results  from  the  character 
of  the  government,  which  is  essentially  popular,  that 
there  ai*e  perpetual  debates  on  the  question  how  fer 
measures  and  enterprises,  for  the  purposes  of  humanity 
and  science,  are  consistent  with  the  constitiitional  or- 
ganization of  the  government,  althouffh  they  are  ad- 
mitted to  be  eminently  compatible  with  the  dignity, 
character,  and  intelligence  of  the  nation.  All  our  en- 
terprises, more  or  less,  are  carried  into  execution,  if 
thev  are  carried  into  execution  at  all,  not  by  the  direct 
action  of  the  government,  but  by  the  lending  of  its 
favor,  countenance,  and  aid  to  individuals,  to  corpora 
tions,  and  to  States.  Thus  it  is.  that  we  construct  rail- 
roads and  canals,  and  found  colleges  and  univci'sities. 
"  Nor  is  this  mode  of  prosfecuting  enterprises  of  great 
pith  and  moment  peculiar  to  this  government.  There 
was  a  navigator  who  went  forth  fi*oma  port  in  Spain, 
some  three  or  four  hundred  years  ago,  on  an  enterprise 
quite  as  doubtful  and  quite  as  perilous  as  this.  After 
trying  unsuccessfully  several  States,  ho  was  forced  to  bo 
content  with  the  sanction,  and  little  more  than  the  sanc- 
tion and  patronage  of  tlic  Court  of  Madrid.  The  scanty 
ti^»asnres  devotea  to  tl|at  undertaking  were  the  private 
confrib'itions  of  a  Queen  and  her  subjects,  and  ilio  vca- 


BEBATK  IN  CONGKEBS.  ""^^ 


945 


Bols  >vcrc  iHted  out  and  manned  at  tltc  cx|)cn8o  of  mop- 
cliiints  and  citixcns,  which  gave  a -now  world  to  tlio 
kingdom  of  Castilo  and  Leon. . 

**  Entoi'taining  those  views  now,  wliatcvcr  my  opinion 
might  have  been  nnder  other  cirenmstanccs,  I  sliall  vote 
against  a  recommittal,  and  in  favor  of  the  bill,  as  the 
snrest  way  of  preventing  its  defeat,  and  of  attaining  the 
sublime  and  beneficent  object  which  it  contemplates." 

The  committee  of  both  Houses  of  Congress,  to  whom 
Mr.  GrinnblPs  petition  for  men  and  supplies  was  re- 
ferred, made  a  unanimous  report  in  favor ;  and  the 
vessels  left  on  their  daring  and  generous  errand. 

Tlie  following  are  the  joint  resolutions  which  passed 
both  Houses  ot  Congress  and  were  approved  by  Gen- 
eral Taylor,  authorizing  the  President  of  the  United 
States  to  accept  and  attach  to  the  U.  S.  Kavy  the  two 
vessels,  offered  by  Mr.  Grinnell,  to  be  sent  to  the  arctic 
Bca«!  ^"  search  of  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  companions: 
K  -^h'cd  by  the  Senate  and  House'  of  Represent- 
ative, t  .he  United  States  of  America  in  Congress 
assemuicu,  That  the  President  be,  and  he  is  hereby 
authorized  and  directed,  to  receive  from  Hei>ry  Grinnell, 
of  the  city  of  New  York,  the  two  vessela  preijared  by 
him  for  an  expedition  in  search  of  Sir  Jonn  Franklin 
and  his  companions,  aitd  to  detail  from  the  Navy  such 
commissioned  and  warrant  officers,  and  so  many  sea- 
men as  may  be  necessary  for  said  expedition,  and  wlio 
may  *W  willing  to  engage  therein.  The  said  ofHcci'S 
ana  men  shall  be  furnished  with  suitable  rations,  at  the 
discretion  of  the  President,  for  a  period  not  exceeding 
three  years,  and  shall  have  the  use  of  such  necessary 
instmments  as  aro  now  on  hand  and  can  be  spared  jft'om 
the  Navy,  to  be  accounted  for  or  returned  by  tJie  offi- 
cers who  shall  receive  the  same. 

J'  Sec.  2.  Bo  it  further  resolved,  Tliat  the  said  vessels, 
ofiicers,  and  men  shall  bo  in  all  respects  under  the  laws 
and  regulations  of  the  Navy  of  tlie  United  States  until 
their  return,  Avlien  the  said  vessels  shall  be  delivered 
to  the  said  Henry  Grinnejl :  Provided^  ThaUhe  United 
States  sbalj  not  be  liable  to  any  claim  for  compensation 


::si*-^. 


■5^-' 


aid 


PBOORKSB  OF  ▲BCTiO  lAaOOVKRY, 


in  case  of  the  loss,  damage  or  deterioration  of  the  said 
veeeels,  or  either  of  them,  from  any  cause  or  in  any 
manner  whatever,  nor  be  liable  to  any  demand  for  the 
use  or  risk  of  the  said  vessels  or  either  of  them." 

Directly  the  fact  became  known  that  the  American 
government  had  nobly  come  forward  to  aid  in  the  searcli 
whidi  was  being  so  strenuously^  made,  the  different 
learned  societies  of  the  metropolis  vied  with  each  other 
in  testifying  the  estimation  in  which  this  noble  conduct 
was  held.  J" 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Boyal  Society,  on  the 
7th  of  June,  upon  the  motion  of  Sir  Charles  Lennox, 
seconded  by  the  late  Marquis  of  Northampton,  a  vote 
of  thanks  was  carried  with  the  utmost  enthusiasm,  ex- 
pressive of  the  gratitude  of  the  Society  to  the  American 
government,  and  of  their  deep  sense  of  the  kin4  and 
brotherly  feeling  which  had  prompted  so  liberal  in  act 
of  humanity.  A  similar  vote  was  carried,  on  the  11th 
of  June,  at  a  general  meeting  of  the  Boyal  Geograph- 
ical Society,  (of  which  Sir  J^n  Franklin  Ti^as  long  one 
of  the  vice-presidents.) 

The  American  expedition  consists  of  two  brigantines 
—  now  enrolled  in  tne  United  States  Navy  —  the  Ad- 
vance, of  144  tons,  and  the  Eescue,  91  tons.  These 
vessels  have  been  provided  and  fitted  out  by  the  gener- 
ous munificence  of  Mr.  Heniy  Grinnell,  a  merchant  of 
New  York,  at  an  expense  to  him  of  between  6000/.  and 
6000^.  The  American  government  also  did  mi^cl^  to- 
Irard  fitting  and  equipping  them.  The  Advance  was 
two  years  old,  and  the  Kescue  quite  new.  Both  vessels 
were  strengthened  in  every  part,  and  put  in  the  most 
complete  order  for  the  service  in  which  they  were  to  be 
engaged.  They  are  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant 
Edward  S.  De  Haven,  who  was  employed  in  Com- 
mander Wilkes'  expedition  in  1843 ;  Mr.  S.  P.  Griffin. 
acting  master,  has  charge  of  the  Bescuc.,  The  other 
officers  of  the  expedition  are  Messrs,  W.  H.  Murdaiigh, 
acting-master ;  T.  W.  Broadhead,  and  E.  B.  Carter, 
passS  midshipmen  ;  Dr.  E.  K.  Kane,  passed  assistant- 
rai^j^n ;  Mr.  l^njamin  Finland,  assistant^surgcon ;  W 


\   i 


XBS  AMKfilCAN  JECXPETrnOK. 


347 


S.  Lovell)  midshipman ;  H.  Brooks,  boatswain  ;  and  a 
complement  of  tnirty-six  seamen  in  the  two  yessols  — 
thfl  crew  of  the  Advance  consisting  of  fifteen  menjiind 
tlu)  Kescne  thirteen  men.  The  vessels  loft  New  York 
on  the  26th  of  May,  1850.  Their  proposed  destination 
ii  through  Barrow's  Strait,  westward  to  Cape  Walker, 
and  roimd  Melville  Island.  They  were  provisioned  for 
tliree  years. 

Whatever  mav  be  the  result  of  this  expedition,  as 
connected  firith  toe  fate  of  the  ffallant  Sir  ti  ohn  Frank- 
lin, it  is  one  which  reflects  the  highest  honor  upon  the 
philanthropic  individual  who  projected  it,  and  upon  the 
officera  and  men  engaged  therein. 

A  dispatch  has  been  received  from  Lieutenant  De 
Haven,  datod  off  Leopold  Island,  August  22d,  which 
reports  the  progress  .of  the  expedflmi  thus  far.  The 
Advance,  in  company  with  her  consort,  the  Bescue, 
sailed  from  the  Whale  Fish  Islands  on  the  29th  of  June; 
after  many  delays  au^bstructions  from  calms,  stream 
ice,  and  the  main  pack,  they  forced  a  passage  through 
it  for  a  considerable  distance,  but  at  last  got  wedged  up 
in  the  pack  immovably  until  the  29th  of  Jidy,  when 
bj  a  sudden  movement  of  the  floes,  an  opening  pre- 
sented itself,  and  under  a  press  of  sail  the  vessels  forced 
their  way  into  clear  water.  They  encountered  a  heavy 
sale,  wmch,  with  a  thick  fog,  made  their  situation  very 
daneerous,  the  huge  masses  of  ice  being  driven  along 
by  Ute  strength  of  the  wind  and  current  with  great 
fiuy.  By  the  aid  of  warping  in  calm  weather,  thejr 
reached  Gape  Yorke  on  the  15th  of  August,  and  a  little 
to  the  eastward  met  with  two  Esq^uimaux,  but  could  not 
nnderstand  much  from  them.  Between  Cape  Yorke 
and  Cape  Dudley  Biggs,  while  delayed  by  cauns,  being 
in  open  water,  they  hauled  the  ships  into  the  shore  at 
the  Crimson  Cliffi  of  Beverley,  (so  named  from  the  red 
snow  on  them,)  and  filled  their  water  casks  from  a 
mountain  stream. 

On  the  18th,  with  a  fair  wind,  they  shaped  their  course 
for  the  western  side  of  Baflin's  Bay,  and  met  the  padc  in 
8treainii8.and  rery  loofee,  which  ther  cleartid  entii^lj  by 


848 


PBOOBESS  OF  ARCTIC  DISCOVERY. 


tfce  following  day  —  getting  into  the  north  Waters,  where 
they  fell  in  with  Captain  Penny's  two  vessels,  which 
having  been  nnsuccessful  in  their  efforts  to  enter  Jones' 
Sound^  were  now  taking  the  same  course  np  Lancaster 
Sonnd.  On  the  19th,  ii]^  a  violent  gale,  the  Advance 
parted  coippany  with  the  Jpescne.  On  the  morning  oi 
the  21st  of  August,  the  fog  cleared,  and  Lieutenant  Do 
Haven  found  he  was  off  Cape  Crawford,  on  the  south 
em  shore  of  the  Sound.  Here  he  fell  in  with  the  Felix 
schooner,  under  Captain  Sir  John  Ross,  froiA  whom  he 
learned  that  Commodore  Austin  was  at  Pond's  Bay  with 
two  of  his  vessels,  seeking  for  information,  while  the 
other  two  had  been  dispatched  to  examine  the  north 
shore  of  the  Soundi.  Lieutenant  De  Haven  proposed 
proceeding  on  frojoiPort  Leopold  to  Wellington  Chan- 
nel, the  appointcdplace  of  rendezvous  with  his  c(^nsort. 

Captain  Forsyth's  IlEMARS|||itE  Yoyaoe  m  the 
"Prince  Aijjert." 

In  April,  1850,  a  branch  expedition  to  aid  those  ves- 
sels sent  out  by  the  government  was  determined  on  by 
Lady  Franklin,  who  contributed  largely  toward  its  out- 
fit ;  a  considerable  sum  being  also  raised  by  public 
subscription.  The  expenses  of  this  expedition  were 
nearlv  4000?.,  of  which  2500?.  were  contributed  by  Lady 
Franklin  herself.  The  object  of  this  expedition  was 
the  providing  for  the  searcn  of  a  portion  of  the  Arctic 
Sea,  which  it  was  distinctly  understood  could  not  be 
executed  by  the  vessels  under  Captain  Austin  ;  but  the 
importance  of  which  had  been  set  forth,  by  arctic  and 
other  authorities,  in  documents  printed  in  the  Parlia- 
mentary Papers. 

The  unprovided  portion  alluded  to,  includes  Regent 
Inllet.  and  the  passages  connecting  it  with  the  western 
8^  James  Boss's  Strait,  and  other  localities,  S.  W.  of 
Cape  Walker,  to  which  quarter  Sir  John  Franklin  was 
rfiqiUFed  by  his  instructions  to  proceed  in  the  first  in- 
smpe.  This  search  is  assumed  to  be  necessary  on  tlie 
i^<^wit)g  grounds : —r  a-    - 


irOYAGE  OF  THIi.  PRIVCE  ALBERT. 


849 


1^  The  probability  of  Sir  John  Franklin  having 
Abandoned  his  vessels  to  the  S.  W.  of  Gape  Walker. 

2.  The  fiMst  that,  in  his  charts,  an  open  passage  is 
laid  down  from  the  west  into  the  sonth  part  of  Begent 
Inlet. 

3.  Sir  John  Franklin  would  be  more  likely  to  take 
this  conrse  thronsh  a  country  known  to  possess  the  re- 
Bources  of  animal  life,  with  the  wreck  of  the  Victory 
in  Felix  Harbor  for  fuel,  and  the  stores  of  Fnry  Beach 
farther  north  in  view,  th«  -  to'fall  upon  an  utterly  barren 
region  of  the  non*    ',o«,>    -f  America. 

1.  He  would  be  more  iikely  to  expect  succor  to  be 
sent  to  him  by  way  of  Lancaster  Sound  and  Barrow's 
Strait,  into  which  Begent  Inlet  opens,  than  in  any 
other  direction.  ^ 

In  corroboration  of  the  necessity  of  this  part  of  the 
search,  I  would  refer  generally  to  the  Parliamentary 
papers  of  1848-9  and  50.  As  an  individual  opinion,! 
may  quote  the  words  of  Captain  Beechey,  p.  31  of  the 
first  series.  "'If,  in  this  condition,"  (that  of  being 
hopelessly  blocked  up  to  the  S.  "W".  of  Gape  Walker^ 
"  which  r  trust  may  not  be  the  case,  Sir  John  Franklin 
should  resolve  upon  taking  to  his  boats,  he  would  prefer 
attempting  a  boat  nav?gation  through  Sir  James  Boss's 
Strait,  and  up  Begent  Inlet,  to  a  long  land  journey 
across  the  continent  to  the  Hudson  Bay  Settlements, 
to  which  the  greater  part  of  his  crew  would  be  wholly 
unequal."  And  again,  in  his  letter  to  the  Secretary 
of  the  Admiralty,  7th  of  February,  1850,  Captain 
Beechey  writes,  ******  the  bottom  of  Begent  Inlet, 
ahout  the  Felly  Islands,  should  not  be  left  unexamined, 
[n  the  memorandum  submitted  to  their  Lordships,  17th 
of  January^  1849,  this  quarter  was  considered  of  im- 
portance, and  I  am  still  of  opinion  that  had  Sir  John 
Franklin  abandoned  his  vessels  near  the  coast  of 
America,  and  much  short  of  the  Mackenzie  Biver,  he 
would  have  preferred  the  probability  of  retaining  the 
use  of  his  boats  until  he  found  relief  in  Barrow's  Strait, 
to  risking  an  overland  journey  ma  the  before-men- 
tioned riv^r ;  and  it  must  be  remembered  that  at  the 


*■ 


"i!^' 


HO 


PBOGJtSlBS  or  ABCnO  DIfiOaVBBT. 


time  he  sailed,  Sir  Georce  Back's  discoverjr  had  ren 
dered  it  Tery  probable  that  Boothia  was  an  island. 

The  memorandum  allndod  to  by  Oaptain  Beechev 
as  havinir  been  submitted  to  the  Lords  of  the  Admt 
ralty  on  the  17th  of  January,  1849,  was,  the  expression 
of  the  unanimous  opinion  of  the  arctic  officers  assem- 
bled by  command  ot  the  Admiralty  to  deliberate  upoa 
the  best  means  to  be  taken  for  the  relief  of  the  missing 
expedition ;  and  in  this  report,  clause  14  is  expressly 
devoted  to  the  recommendation  of  the  search  of  llegent 
Inlet. 

The  necessity  for  the  proposed  search  may  be  thus 
further  developed.  Sir  John  Franklin  may  have  aban- 
doned his  ships,  when  liis  provisions  were  nearly  ex- 
hausted somewhere  about  the  latitude  of  73°  N.,  long. 
105"  W. ;  in  short,  at  any  point  S.  W.  of  Cape  Wfilker, 
not  farther  "W".  than  long.  110°.  And  in  such 'case, 
rather  than  return  north,  (which  might  be  indeed  im- 
practicable) or  moving  south  up^  the  American  Con- 
tinent, of  which  (upon  the  coast,)  the  utter  barrenness 
was  already  well  known  to  hira,  lie  mig^ht  prefer  a 
southeastern  course,  with  a  view  of  passing  in  his  boats, 
either  through  James  Boss's,  or  through  Simpson's 
Straits,  into  tne  Gulf  of  Boothia,  and  so  up  into  Kegent 
Inlet  to  the  house  and  stores  left  at  Fury  ]Beacb,  the 
only  depot  of  provisions  known  to  him.  The  advantages 
of  such  a  course  might  appear  to  him  very  great. 

1.  Two  open  passages  being  laid  down  in  his  charts 
into  Eegent  Inlet,  by  James  Boss's  Strait,  and  by  Simp* 
son's  Strait,  a  means  of  boat  transport  for  his  party 
would  be  afforded,  of  which  alone  perhaps  their  ex- 
hausted strength  and  resources  might  admit;  such  a 
course  would  obviously  recommend  itself  to  a  com- 
niander  who  had  experienced  the  frightful  difficulties 
of  a  land  journey  in  tliose  regions. 

2.  The  proposed  course  would  lead  through  a  part, 
the  Isthmus  of  Boothia,  in  which  animal  life  is  known 
at  some  seasons  to  abound. 

3.  The  Esquimaux  who  have  been  found  on  tho 
Is^mus  o^  Boothia  are  extremely  well  disposed  and 


■H 


VOYAGE  OF  THE   PRINt-K    ALBERT. 


Shi 


4.  It  18  the  direct  ronte  toward  the  habitual  yearly 
resort  of  the  whalers  onihe  west  coast  of  BafiiD's  Bay 
and  Davis'  Strait ;  indeed  those  ships  occasionally  de- 
scend Regent  Inlet  to  a  considerable  dietarice  south. 

5.  There  are  two  persons  attached  to  the  expedition* 
who  are  well  acquainted  with  this  region  ana  its  ro 
sources  —  viz.,  Mr.  Blanky,  ice  master,  and  Mr.  Mac 
Donald,  assistant  sui^eon,  of  the  Terror.    The  former 
was  with  Sir  John  Ross  in  the  Victory.    The  lattei 
has  made  several  voyages  in  whaling  vessels  and  is 
acquainted  with  the  parts  lyin^  between  Begent  Inlet 
and  Davis'  Strait.     Where  so  tew  among  the  crews  of 
the  missing  ships  have  had  any  local  experience,  the 
concurrent  knowledge  of  two  persons  would  have 
considerable  weight. 

6.  Opinions  are  very  greatly  divided  as  to  the  part 
m  whicn  Sir  John  Franldin's  party  may  have  been  ar- 
rested, and  as  to  the  course  they  may  have  taken  in 
consequence.  It  would  be  therefore  manifestly  unfair, 
and  most  dangerous,  to  reason  out  and  magnify  any  one 
hvpothesis  at  the  expense  of  the  others.  The  plan  here 
alluded  to  sought  to  provide  for  the  probability  of  the 
Expedition  having  been  stopped  shortly  after  passing  to 
the  southwest  of  Capo  "Walker.  The  very  open  season 
of  1845  was  followed  by  years  of  unusual  severity  until 
1849.  It  is  therefore  very  possible  that  retreat  as  well 
as  onward  progress  has  been  impossible  —  that  safety 
alone  has  become  their  last  object.  The  hope  of  rescu- 
ing them  in  tiieir  last  extremity  depends,  then,  (as  tar 
as  numan  means  can  insure  it,)  on  the  multiplying  of 
sinaultaneous  eflforts  in  every  direction.  Captain  Aus- 
tin's vessels  will,  if  moving  in  pairs,  take  two  most  im- 
portant sections  only,  of  tne  general  search,  and  will 
find  they  have  enough  to  do  to  reach  their  several  points 
of  operation  this  season. 

The  necessity  for  this  search  was  greatly  enhanced 
tj  the  intelligence  received  about  this  time  in  England 
of  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Rae  and  Commander  PuUen  at 
the  Mackenzie  Biver,  thus  establishing  the  fact,  that 
Sir  John  Franklin's  party  had  not  reached  any  part  of 


^. 


'■^ 


852 


PBOOBEeiR  OF  ABCTIO  PI8COVEEY. 


4r^ 


the  coast  between  Behring^s  Strait  and  the  Cop^rmine 
Biver,  while  the  check  which  Mr.  Bae  received  m 
hip  course  to  the  north  of  the  Coppermine,  tended  to 
give  increased  importance  to  the  quarter  eastward  of 
«  uiat  position. 

Commander  Charles  Codrinston  Forsyth,  E.  K.,  an 
enterprising  yonng  officer,  who  nad  not  long  previousljr 
been  promoted  in  consequence  of  his  arduous  services 
in  surveying  on  the  Australian,  African,  and  American 
shores,  and  who  had  rendered  good  service  to  the  gov- 
ernment by  landing  supplies  on  the  east  coast  of  Africa, 
under  circumstances  of  great  difficulty  during  the  Kafir 
war,  had  volunteered  unsuccessfully  for  all  the  govern- 
ment expeditions,  but  was  permitted  by  the  Admiralty 
to  command  this  private  branch  expedition,  in  which 
he  embarked  without  fee  or  reward  —  on  the  nolfle  and 
honorable  mission  of  endeavoring  to  relieve  hi^  xong- 
imprisoned  brother  officers. 

The  Prince  Albert,  a  small  clipper  vessel  of  about 
ninety  tons,  originally  built  hy  Messrs.  White,  of  Cowes, 
in  October,  ISlS,  for  the  firuit  trado,  was  accordingly 
hastily  fitted  out  and  dispatched  from  Aberdeen,  and 
Captain  Forsyth  was  instructed  to  winter,  if  possible, 
in  Brentford  Bay,  in  Begent  Inlet,  and  thence  send 
parties  to  explore  the  opposite  side  of  the  isthmus  and 
the  various  shores  and  bays  of  the  Inlet^  She  had  a 
crew  of  twenty,  "W".  Kay  and  W,  Wilson  acting  as  first 
and  second  mates,  and  Mr.  W.  P.  Snow  as  clerk.  She 
sailed  on  the  5th  of  June,  and  was  consequently  the 
last  vessel  that  left,  and  yet  is  the  first  that  has  reached 
home,  having  also  brought  some  account  of  the  track 
of  Franklin's  expedition. 

The  Prince  Albert  arrived  off  Cape  Farewell,  July 
2d,  entered  the  ice  on  the  19th,  and  on  the  2l8t,  came 
up  with  Sir  John  Boss  in  a  labyrinth  of  ice.  She  pro- 
ceeded up  Lancaster  Sound  and  Barrow's  Strait,  fell  in 
with  most  of  the  English  ships  in  those  seas,  and  also 
with  the  American  brig  Advance,  sailing  some  time  in 
company,  and  attempted  to  enter  Begent  Inlet  and  "Wel- 
lington Chaanel.     Shr  left  the  Advance  agronnd  near 


M- 


'#' 


»* 


•. 


«*' 


^  OYAGK  or  TIIK   PKINOK  ALBERT. 


853 


Cape  Kiley,  at  the  entrance  of  Wellin^n  Chaimol, 
though  not  in  a  eituation  eupposed  to  be  dangerous. 
Commander  Foreyth,  in  his  omcial  letter  to  the  Lords 
of  the  Admiralty,  says  that  '^  traces  of  the  missing  ex- 
Mdition  under  Sir  Joha  Franklin  had  been  found  at 
Cape  Riley  and  Beechey  Island,  at  the  entrance  to  the 
Wellington  Channel.  We  observed  five  places  where 
tents  bad  been  pitched,  or  stones  placed  as  if  they  had 
been  used  for  keeping  the  lower  part  of  the  tents  down, 
also  great  quantities  of  beef,  pork,  and  birds'  bones,  a 

Siece  of  rope,  with  the  Woolwich  naval  mark  on  it, 
rellow,)  part  of  which  I  have  inclosed."  Having  en- 
tered Wellington  Channel,  and  examined  t  je  coast  as 
I'ar  as  Point  Einis,  and  finding  no  fn)*ther  traces  of  tho 
missing  vessels,  and  it  being  impracticable  to  peiiotrav  s 
fhrther  to  the  west.  Commander  Forsyth  returned  to  T.q 
gent  Inlet,  but  meeting  no  opening  there,  the  season 
oeing  near  at  hand  when  the  ice  begins  to  form,  and 
his  vessel  not  of  a  strength  which  would  enable  \  t) 
resist  a  heavy  pressure  ot  ice,  he  determined  on  re'  uri* 
ing  without  further  delay  to  England,  after  examining 
a  number  of  points  nlong  the  coast. 

On  the  25th  of  August,  a  signal  stafif  being  observed 
on  shore  at  Cape  Riley,  Mr.  Snow  was  sent  by  Captain 
Forsyth  to  examine  it.  He  found  that  the  Assistance, 
Captain  Ommaney,  had  been  there  two  days  before,  and 
haa  left  the  following  notice  : — 

"  This  is  to  certify  that  Captain  Ommaney,  with  the 
officers  of  her  Majesty's  ships  Assistance  and  Intrepid, 
landed  upon  Cape  Riley  on  tne  23d  Aug^i  1. 1860,  where 
he  found  traces  of  encampments,  and  collected  the  re- 
mains of  materials,  which  evidently  proved  that  some 
party  belonging  to  her  Majesty's  ships  had  been  de- 
taine4  on  that  spot.  Beeohey  Island  was  also  examined, 
where  traces  were  found  of  the  same  party.  This  is 
also  to  give  notice  that  a  supply  of  provisions  and  fuel 
«  at  Cape  Rilev.  Since  15th  August,  thev  have  ex- 
amined tne  nortn  shore  of  Lancaster  Sound  and  Bar- 
row's Strait,  without  meeting  with  any  other  traces. 
Captain. Ommaney  proceeds  to  Cape  Hotham  and  Cape 


■snj 


f* 


:#^, 


354 


l»R0aRB83   OF   ABOTIC   DISOOYEBY. 


Walker  in  search  of  further  traces  of  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin's expedition.  Dated  on  board  her  Majesty's  ship 
Assistance,  off  Cape  Riley,  the  23d  August,  1850." 

The  seamen  who  were  dispatched  from  the  Assietance 
to  examine  these  remains,  found  a  rope  with  the  naval 
mark,  evidently  belonging  to  a  vessel  which  had  been 
fitted  out  at  W  oolwich,  and  which,  in  all  probability, 
was  either  the  Erebus  or  the  Terror.  -Other  indications 
were  also  noticed,  which  showed  that  some  vessel  had 
visited  the  place  besides  the  Assistance.  Captain  For- 
syth left  a  notice  that  the  Prince  Albert  had  called  off 
Cape  Riley  on  the  26th  of  August,  and  then  bore  up 
to  the  eastward.  Captain  Forsyth  landed  at  Posses- 
sion Bay  on  the  29th  August,  but  nothing  was  found 
there  to  repay  the  search  instituted. 

The  Prince  Albert  arrived  at  Aberdeen,  on  ^e  22d 
of  October,  after  a  quick  passage,  having  been  absent 
something  less  than  four  months. 

.Captain  Forsyth  proceeded  to  London  by  the  mail 
train,  taking  with  him,  for  the  information  of  the  Ad- 
miitdty,  the  several  bones,  (beef,  pork,  &c.,)  which  were 
found  on  Cape  Riley,  together  with  a  piece  of  rope  of 
about  a  foot  and  a  half  in  length,  and  a  small  piece  of 
canvas  with  the  Queen's  mark  upon  it,  both  in  an  ex 
cellent  state  of  preservation  ;  placing  it  almost  beyond 
a  doubt  that  they  were  left  on  that  spot  by  the  expedi 
*ion  under  Sir  John  Franklin. 

^  <Japtain  Forsyth,  during  his  short  trip,  explored  re- 
gions which  Sir  James  I^ss  was  unable  to  reach  the 
previous  year.     He  was  at  Wellington  Channel,  and 

Senetrated  to  Fury  Beach,  where  Sir  E.  Parry  aban- 
oned  his  vessel,  (the  Fury,)  in  1825,  after  she  had 
taken  the  ground.  It  is  situated  in  about  72°  40'  K. 
latitude,  and  91°  50'  W.  longitude.  This  is  a  point 
vhich  has  not  beon  reached  by  any  vessel  for  twenty 
years  past.  It  was  found,  however,  utterly  impossible 
to  land  there  on  account  of  the  packed  ice.  The  whole 
of  the  coasts  of  Baffin's  Bay  have  also  now  been  visited 
without  result. 
i    The  intelligence  which  Capt.  Fony^  brought  homf» ' 


■«i » 


f. 


VOYAGE   or    THE  PllUIOE  ALBBBT. 


355 


ha3,  as  a  matter  of  coarse,  excited  the  most  intense  in* 
terest  in  naval  circles,  and  among  the  friends  and  rela- 
tives of  the  parties  absent  in  the  Erebus  and  Terror, 
the  more  so  masmuch  'as  it  has  been  ascertained  at 
Cliatliam  Dockyard  that  the  rope  which  Captain  For- 
syth found  on  the  spot  when  he  visited  it,  and  copied 
Capt.  Ommaney's  notice,  is  proved  by  its  yellow  mark 
to  have  been  lyanufactured  there,  and  certainlv  siifce 
1  J4 ;  and  moreover,  from  inquiries  instituted,  very 
strong  evidence  has  been  elicited  in  fiivor  of  the  belief 
l^at  the  rope  was  made  between  the  years  1841  and 
1849.  That  the  trail  of  the  Franldin  expedition,  or 
Bome  detachment  of  it,  has  been  struck,  there  '^cannot 
be  the  slightest  doubt  in  the  mind  of  any  one  who  has 
read  the  dispatches  and  reports.  That  09|>tain  Om- 
rnaney  felt  satisfied  on  this  score  is  evident  from  the 
terms  of  the  paper  he  left  behind  him.  The  squadron, 
it  appears,  were  in  full  cry  upon  the  scent  on  the  25th 
of  August,  and  we  must  wait  patiently,  but  anxiously, 
for  the  next  accounts  of  the  results  of  their  indefatiga- 
ble researches,  which  can  hardly  reach  us  from  Bar- 
row's Strait  before  the  autumn  of  1851. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  now  in  the  mind  of  any  ofte, 
that  the  Arctic  Searching  Expeditions  have  at  length 
come  upon  traces,  if  not  the  track  of  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin. The  accounts  brought  by  Captain  Forsyth  must 
have  at  least  satisfied  the  most  desponding  that  there 
is  still  hope  left — that  the  ships  have  not  K>undered  in 
Baffin's  Bay,  at  the  outset  of  the  voyage,  nor  been 
crushed  in  the  ice,  and  burned  by  a  savage  tribe  of 
Esquimaux,  who  had  murdered  the  crew.  That  the 
former  might  have  happened,  all  must  admit ;  but  to 
dip  latter,  few,  we  imagine,  will  give  their  assent,  not- 
withstanding the  numerous  cruel  rumors  promulgated 
from  time  to  time.  It  would  be  idle  to  dwell  upon  so 
impossible  an  event.  Where  could  this  sava^  tribe 
spring  from  ?  Mr.  Saunders  describes  the  natives  of 
W  olstenholme  Sound  as  the  most  miserable  and  hdp- 
less  of  mortals.  They  had  no  articles  obtained  from 
Europeans  ;  and  he  was  of  opinion  that  ther«  were  no 


856 


PBOOBBSS  OF  ABOnO  DISCOVEBT. 


Bettlements  farther  north  ;  jind  if  there  were,  donbtless 
they  would  be  even  more  impotent  than  these  wretched 
beings.  That  the  ship  misht  hare  fonndered  a^'must 
admit.  The  President  did  so  with  many  a  gallant  soul 
on  board.  The  Avenger  ran  on  the  ^relli,  and  300 
brave  fellows,  in  an  instant,  met  with  a  watery  grave ; 
and  till  the  sea  shall  mve  np  her  dead,  who  can  count 
the  thousands  that  lie  oeneath  the  bill(^s  of  the  mighty 
ocean  ?  We  have  now  certain  evidence  that  Franklin's 
ships  did  not  founder — not,  at  least,  in  Bafiin^s  Ba; ; 
ana  our  own  belief,  (says  a  well-informed  and  compe- 
tent writer  in  the  Morning  Herald,)  is  that  the  pennant 
still  floats  in  the  northern  breeze,  amid  eternal  regions 
of  snow  and  ice. 

The  volage  performed  by  the  Prince  Albert  has  thus 
been  the  means  of  keeping  alive  our  hopes,  and lof  in- 
forming us,  up  to  a  certain  point,  of  the  progress  of 
the  expeditions,  and  the  situation  of  the  dinerent  ships, 
of  which  we  might  have  been  left  in  a  state  of  utter 
ignorance  till  the  close  of  this  year.  Every  thing  con- 
nected with  the  navigation  of  the  arctic  seas  is  a 
chance,  coupled,  of  course,  with  skill ;  and  in  looking 
at  this  voyage  performed  by  Lady  Franklin's  little 
vessel,  it  must  be  obvious  to  every  one  that  Captain 
Forsyth  has  had  the  chance  of  an  open  season,  and  the 
•kill  to  make  use  of  it. 

^*  Live  a  thousand  years,"  and  wd  may  never  see  such 
another  voyage  performed.  Wo  have  only  to  look  at 
all  that  have  preceded.  Parry,  it  is  true,  in  one  year 
ran  to  Melville  Island,  and  passing  a  winter,  got  back 
to  England  the  following  season — and  this  is  at  present 
the  ne  plus  lUtra  of  arctic  navigation.  Sir  John  Boss, 
we  know  went  out  in  the  Victory  to  Eesent  Inlet,  aid 
leas  frozen  in  for  four  years,  and  all  the  world  gave 
him  up  for  Icpt — but "  there's  life  in  the  old  dog  yet," 
ag  the  song  ha*  it. 

Sir  James  Boss  was  frozen  in  at  Leopold  Harbor, 
and  only  got  out,  afto**  passing  a  winter,  to  be  carried 
•way  in  a  floe  of  ice  into  Baffin's  Bay,  which  no  human 
■kill  could  prevent, 


VOTAGE  OF  THE  rEINCB  ALBEBT. 


357 


Sir  George  Back  was  to  make  a  summer's  cruise  to 
Wager  Inlet,  and  return  to  England.  The  result  every 
Dne  knows  or  may  make  themselves  acquainted  with, 
by  reading  the  fearful  voyage  of  the  Terror,  an  ab- 
Btract  of  which  I  have  alre^y  given.  It  would  bo 
superfluous  to  enumerate  many  other  of  our  series  of 
Dolar  voyages,  but  it  id  pretty  evident  that  Captain 
Forsyth's  vovige,  performed  in  the  siimmer  months 
of  1850,  will  Debanded  down  to  posterity  as  one  of  the 
jaost  remarkable,  if  not  the  most  remarkable,  that  has 
ever  been  accomplished  in  the  arctic  seas  —  the  expe- 
dition consisting  of  one  solitary  small  vessel. 

The  main  obiect  of  the  voyage,  it  is  true,  lias  not 
been  accomplished,  but  as  all  the  harbors  in  Begent 
Inlet  were  frozen  up,  and  it  was  utterly  iiiff)ossibU;  to 
cat  through  a  vast  tract  of  ice,  extending  for  perhups 
four  or  five  miles,  to  get  the  ship  to  a  secure  anchor- 
age, under  these  circumstances,  Uaptain  Forsyth  had 
no  alternative  out  to  return,  and  in  doing  so,  he  has, 
in  the  opinion  of  all  the  best-informed  o£Scers,  dis- 
played great  good  sense  and  judgment  rather  than  re- 
main frozen  in  at  the  Wellington  Channel,  where  he 
only  went  to  reconnoiter,  and  where  he  had  no  business 
whatever,  Ms  instructions  being  confined  to  Kegeni«. 
inlet 


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J*<I    A-    .    '    ' 


THE  AMERICAN  ARCTIC  EXPEDITIOK. 


The  Fibst  Grinnell  I^xpedition  in  the  Adyanob  aito 
Rescue,  sent  out  bt  Henst  Gbinnell,  Esq.,  undkb 

COMMAND  OF  IjBUTBNANT  Db  HaYEN,  IN  THE  TEARS 

1850  AND  1851. 


^  The  safe  return  of  the  expedition  sent  out  bv  Hr 
Henry  Giinnell,  an  pulent  merchant  of  Kew  York  citj 
in  search  of  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  companions,  is 
an  event  of  much  interest ;  and  the  voyage,  mough  not 
resulting  in  the  discovery  of  the  long-absent  mariners, 
presents  many  considerations  satisfactorv  to  the  parties 
immediately  concerned,  and  the  American  public  in 
general. 

Mr.  Gr»!inell's  expedition  consisted  of  only  two  small 
brigs,  the  Advance  of  140  tons  ;  the  Rescue  of  only  90 
tons.  The  former  had  been  engaged  in  the  Havana 
trade ;  the  latter  was  a  new  vessel  built  for  the  mer- 
cliant  service.  Both  were  strengthened  for  the  arctic 
voyage  at  a  heavy  cost.  They  were  then  placed  under 
the  directions  of  our  !N'avy  Board,  and  subject  to  naval 
regulations,  as  if  in  permanent  service.  The  command 
was  given  to  lieutE.  De  Haven,  a  young  naval  officer 
who  accompanied  the  United  States  exploring  expedi- 
tion. The  result  has  proved  that  a  better  choice  could 
not  have  been  made.  His  officers  consisted  of  Mr. 
Murdoch,  sailing-master ;  Dr.  E.  K.  Kane,  surgeon  and 
naturalist ;  and  Mr.  Lovell,  midshipman.  The  Advance 
had  a  crew  of  twelve  men  when  she  sailed  ;  two  of  them 
complaining  of  sickness,  and  expressing  a  desire  to 
rctni-n  home,  were  left  at  the  Danisn  settlement  at  Disco 
UlanJ||n  the  coast  of  Greenland. 

ThlPpedition  left  New  York  on  the  23d  of  May 
1850,  and  was  absent  a  little  more  than  sixteen  months. 
They  passed  the  eastern  extremity  of  Newfoundland 


362 


9 


PR0GRKS8  OF  ARCTIO   DISCOVERY. 


ten  days  after  leaving  Sandy  Hook,  and  tlien  sailed 
east-northeast,  directly  for  Cape  Comfort,  <5n  the  coast 
of  Greenland.  The  weather  was  generally  iine,  and 
only  a  single  accident  occurred  on  the  voyage  to  that 
country  of  frost  and  snow.  Off  the  coast  of  Labraddi 
they  met  an  iceberg  making  its  way  toward  the  tropics. 
The  night  was  very  dark,  and  as  the  huffe  voyager  had 
00  "  light  out,"  the  Advance  could  not  be  censured  for 
running  foul.  She  was  punished,  however,  by  the  loss 
of  her  jib-boom,  as  she  ran  against  the  iceberg  at  the 
rate  c»f  seven  or  eight  knots  an  hour. 

The  voyagers  did  not  land  at  Cape  Comfort,  but 
tnming  northward,  jailed  along  the  southwest  coast  of 
Greenland,  sometimes  in  the  midst  of  broad  acres  of 
broken  ice,  (particularly  in  Davis'  Straits,)  as  far  as 
Whale  Island.  On  the  way  the  anniversary  qf  oui 
national  independence  occurred ;  it  was  observed  by 
the  seamen  by  "splicing  the  main-brace" — in  other 
words,  they  were  allowed  an  extra  glass  of  grog  on  that 
day. 

From  Whale  Island,  a  boat,  with  two  officers  and 
four  seamen,  was  sent  to  Disco  Island,  a  distance  of 
about  26  miles,  to  a  Danish  settlement  tnere,  to  procmc 
skin  clothing  and  other  articles  necessary  for  use  during 
the  rigors  of  a  polar  winter.  The  officers  were  enter- 
tained at  the  government  house ;  the  seamen  were  com- 
fortably lodged  with  the  Esqn^''^aux,  sleeping  in  far 
bags  at  night.  Thev  returned  to  the  ship  the  following 
day,  and  the  exipedition  proceeded  on  its  voyage.  When 
passing  the  little  Danish  settlement  of  Upernavick,  they 
were  boarded  by  natives  for  the  first  time.  They  were 
out  in  government  whale-boats,  hunting  for  ducks  and 
seals.  These  hardy  children  of  the  Arctic  Circle  were 
net  shy,  for  through  the  Danes,  the  English  whalers,and 
government  expeditions,  they  had  become  acquainted 
with  men  of  other  latitudes.  ,    0?,, 

When  the  expedition  reached  Melville  Ba^which, 
on  account  of  its  fearful  character,  is  also  catted  the 
DeviVs  iTt^?,  the  voyagers  began,  to  witness  more  of 
the  grandeur  and  perils  of  ai'ctic  scenes.    Icebergs  of 


f 


M 


'"# 


•*; 


« 


M 


.«*!!»- 


9 


At: 


TJUt  AHKKICA2(    4J&CT10  SSPEDlJtOSt, 


366 


h\\  dimensions  came  bearing  down  from  the  Polar  seas, 
lUco  vast  squadrons,  and  the  roar  of  their  rending  camo 
over  the  waters  like  the  booming  of  heavy  broad«idea 
of  contendinff  navies.  They  also  encountered  immense 
floes,  with  only  narrow  channels  between,  and  at  times 
their  situation  was  exceed  inffly  perilous.  On  one  occa- 
sion, after  heaving  through  |^ds  of  ice  for  five  consecu- 
tive weeks,  two  immense  noes,  between  which  thev 
were  making  their  way,  gradually  approached  eacn 
other,  and  for  several  hours  they  expected  their  tiny 
vessels  —  tiny  when  compared  with  the  nighty  objects 
around  them  —  would  be  crushed.  An  immense  calf 
of  ice,  six  or  eight  feet  thick,  slid  under  the  Bescue, 
lifting  her  almost  *^  high  and  dry,"  and  careening  her 
partially  upon  her  beam  ends.  By  means  of  ice-an- 
chors, (large  iron  hooks,)  they  kept  her  from  capsizing. 
In  this  position  they  remained  about  sixty  hours,  when, 
mih.  saws  and  axes,  they  succeeded  in  relieving  her. 
The  ice  now  opened  a  little,  and  they  finally  warped 
through  into  clear  water.  While  they  were  thus  con^ 
tined,  polar  bears  came  around  them  in  abundance, 
greedy  for  prey,  and  the  seamen  indulged  a  little  in  the 
perilous  sports  of  the  chase. 

Tlio  open  sea  continued  but  a  short  time,  when  they 
again  became  entangled  among  bergs,  floes,  and  hum- 
mocks, and  encountered  the  most  fearful  perils.  Some- 
times they  anchored  their  vessels  to  icebergs,  and  some- 
times to  noes  or  masses  of  hummock.  On  one  of  these 
occasions,  while  the  cook,  an  active  Frenchman,  was 
upon  a  berg,  making  a  place  for  an  anchor,  the  mass  of 
ice  split  beneath  him,  and  he  was  dropped  through  the 
yawninj?  fissure  into  the  water,  a  distance  of  almost 
thirty  Set.  Fortunately  the  masses,  as  is  often  the 
case,  did  not  close  up  again,  but  floated  apart,  and  the 
|30or  cook  was  haulea  on  board  more  dead  than  alive, 
trom  e|^ssive  fright.  It  was  in  this  fearful  region  that 
^^^y^H  encountered  pack-ice,  and  there  they  were 
lockediff  from  the  7th  to  the  23d  of  July.  During  that 
time  they  were  joined  by  the  yacht  Prince  Albert,  com- 
manded by  Cai^tain  Forsyth,  of  the  Royal  IJavy,  and 


866 


PROOltESS  OF   ARCTIO   DI8C0VURT. 


together  the  three  vessels  were  anchored,  i(y<'  ^  whUi>, 
to  an  immense  field  of  ice,  in  si^ht  of  tL  Devii'i 
Thumb.  That  high,  rocky  ]^eak,  situated  in  latitude 
74^  22',  was  about  thirty  miles  distant,  and  with  the 
dark  hills  adjacent,  presented  a  strange  aspect  where 
all  was  white  and  glittering.  The  pack  and  the  hilli 
are  masses  of  rock,  with  occasionally  a  lichen  or  a  moss 
growing  upon  their  otherwise  naked  surfaces.  In  the 
midst  of  the  vast  ice-field  loomed  up  many  lofty  bergg, 
all  of  them  in  motion  —  glow  and  majestic  motion. 

From  the  DeviPs  Thumb  the  American  vessels  passed 
onward  through  the  pack  toward  Sabine's  Islands,  while 
the  Prince  Albert  essayed  to  make  a  more  westerly 
course.  They  reached  Cape  York  at  the  becinning  of 
August.  Far  across  the  ice,  landward,  they  discovered, 
through  their  glasses,  several  men,  apparently  making 
signals  ;  and  for  a  while  they  rejoiced  m  the  belief  thsil 
they  saw  a  portion  of  Sir  John  Franklin's  companions. 
Four  men,  (among  whom  was  our  sailor-artist,)  were 
dispatched  with  a  whale-boat  to  reconnoiter.  They  soon 
discovered  the  men  to  be  Esquimaux,  who,  by  signs, 
professed  great  friendship,  ana  endeavored  to  get  the 
voyagers  to  accompany  them  to  their  homes  beyond 
the  hills.  They  declined  ;  and  as  soon  as  they  returned 
to  the  vessel,  the  expedition  again  pushed  forward,  and 
made  its  way  to  Cape  Dudley  Digges,  which  they 
reached  on  the  7th  of  August. 

At  Cape  Dudley  Di^ffes  they  were  charmed  by  the 
sight  of  tne  Crimson  Clins,  spoken  of  by  Captain  rarry 
and  other  arctic  navigators.  These  are  lofty  clifls  of 
dark  brown  stone,  covered  with  snow  of  a  rich  crimson 
color.  It  was  a  magnificent  sight  in  that  cold  region, 
to  see  such  an  apparently  warm  object  standing  out  in 
bold  relief  against  the  dark  blue  back-ground  oi  a  polar 
sky.  This  was  the  most  northern  point  to  which  the 
expedition  penetrated.  The  whole  coast  whi^^they 
had  passed  from  Disco  to  this  cape  is  high,  rugflll  and 
barren,  only  some  of  the  low  points,  stretching  into  the 
sea,  bearing  a  species  of  dwarf  fir.  Northeast  from 
the  cape  rise  the  Arctic  Highlands,  to  an  unknown  alti- 


^ 


li' 


;« 
^ 


m 


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1^    ^ 


#- 


tude ;  ai 
Smith's  t 

From 
cue,  beal 
ice-fields 
inff  theii 
fields  int 
on  the  IJ 
gale,  whi 
vessels  p 
6eparat€ 
Advance 
22d  disc< 
of  the  st 
precipito 
draped  \ 
the  office 
gi'eetinff. 
tonished, 
America: 
ward  till 
thev  so  8 
eytli  had 
he  intenc 
the  passt 
had  resoj 
peared, t 
and  the  c 
in  our  fo 

The 
(ehen  th< 
iurn  hoir 
tions. 
gust,  tha 
vast  mas 
Snow,  ai 
"  The  w[ 
npon  the 
to  be  eitl 
and,  des 


t^ 


TU£  AMEiaOAN   ARCTIO  UZPEDITION. 


37t 


tude ;  and  stretching  away  northward  is  the  unexplored 
Smith'»  Sound,  filled  with  impenetrable  ice. 

From  Cape  Dudley  Digges,  the  Advance  and  Res- 
cue, beating  against  wind  and  tide  in  the  midst  of  the 
ice-fields,  made  Wolstenholme  Sound,  and  then  chang- 
ing their  course  to  the  southwest,  emerged  from  the 
fields  into  the  open  waters  of  Lancaster  Sound.  Here, 
on  the  18th  of  August,  they  encountered  a  ti'emendous 
gale,  which  Iksted  about  twenty-tour  hours.  The  two 
vessels  parted  company  during  the  storm,  and  remained 
separate  several  days. .  Across  Lancaster  Sound,  the 
Advance  made  her  way  to  Barrow's  Straits,  and  on  the 
22d  discovered  the  Prince  Albert  an  the  southern  shore 
of  the  straits,  near  Leopold  Island,  a  mass  of  lofty, 
precipitous  rocks,  dark  and  barren,  and  hooded  and 
draped  with  snow.  The  weather  was  fine,  and  soon 
the  officers  and  crews  of  the  two  vessels  met  in  friendly 
gi'eeting.  Those  of  the  Prince  Albert  were  much  as- 
tonished, for  they  (being  towed  by  a  steamer,)  left  the 
Americans  in  Melville  B&y  on  the  6th,  pressing  north- 
ward through  the  pack,  and  could  not  conceive  how 
thev  so  soon  and  safely  penetrated  it.  Captain  For- 
syth had  attempted  to  reach  a  pai-ticular  point,  where 
he  intended  to  remain  through  the  winter,  but  finding 
the  passage  thereto  completely  blocked  im  wHh  ice,  he 
had  resolved,  on  the  very  day  when  the  Americans  ap- 
peared,*^o  "  'bout  ship,"  and  return  home.  Tliis  fact, 
and  the  disappointment  felt  by  Mr.  Snow,  are  mentioned 
in  our  former  article.  '  .sf 

The  two  vessels  remained  together  a  day  or  two, 
wrhen  they  parted  company,  the  Prince  Albert  to  re* 
iurn  home,  and  the  Advance  to  make  further  explorp 
tions.  It  was  off  Leopold  Island,  on  the  22d  of  Au- 
gust, that  the  "  mad  Yankee  "  todk  the  lead  through  the 
vast  masses  of  floating  ifte,  so  vividly  described  by  Mr. 
Bnow,  and  so  graphically  portrayed  by  the  sailor-artist. 
"  The  way  was  before  them,"  says  Mr.  Snow,  who  stood 
upon  the  deck  of  the  Advance  ;  "the  stream  of  ice  had 
to  be  either  gone  through  boldly,  or  a  long  detour  made; 
and,  despite  the  heaviness  of  the  stream,  Uiey  pushed 


*-   ♦ 


&•'- 


372 


FBOGBESS  OF  AROTIO  DlSooV^EKY. 


t*** 


th>e  vessel  through  m  her  proper  course.  Two  or  three 
shocks,  as  she  came  in  contact  with  some  large  pieces, 
were  unheeded  ;  and  the  moment  the  last  block  was 
past  the  bow,  the  officer  sung  out, '  So  :  steady  as  she 
goes  on  her  course  ;'  and  came  aft  as  if  nothing  more 
than  ordinary  sailing  had  been  going  on.  I  observed 
our  own  little  bark  nobly  following  in  the  American's 
wake ;  and  as  I  afterward  learned,  she  got  through  it 
pretty  well,  though  not  without  much  douHt  of  the  pro- 
priety  of  keeping  on  in  such  procedure  after  the  '  mad 
Yankee,'  as  he  was  called  by  our  mate." 

From  Leopold  Island  the  Advance  proceeded  to  the 
northwest,  and  on  the  25th  reached  Cape  Riley,  an 
other  amorphous  mass,  not  so  regular  and  precipitate 
as  Leopold  Island,  but  more  lofty.  Here  a  strong  tide, 
setting  in  to  the  shore,  drifted  the  Advance  toward  the 
beach,  where  she  stranded.  Around  her  were  small 
bergs  and  large  masses  of  floating  ice,  all  under  the 
influence  of  the  strong  current.  It  was  about  two 
o'clock  in  the  aft^oon  when  she  struck.  By  diligent 
labor  in  removing  etery  thing  from  her  deck  to  a  small 
floe,  she  was  so  lightened,  that  at  four  o'clock  the  next 
morning  she  floated,  and  soon  every  thing  was  properly 
replaced. 

iTear  CapeJBiley  the  Americans  fell  in  with  a  por- 
tion of  an  lli|^lish  Expedition,  and  there  also  the 
Rescue,  left  behind  in  the  gale  in  Lancaster  Sound, 
overtook  the  Advance.  There  was  Captain  Penny 
with  the  Sophia  and  Lady  Franklin ;  the  veteran  Sir 
John  Boss,  with  the  Felix,  and  Commodore  Austin, 
with  the  Resolrcte  steamer.  Together  the  navigators 
of  both  nations  explored  the  coast  at  and  near  Cape 
Riley,  and  on  the  27th  they  saw  in  a  cove  on  the  shore 
of  Beechey  Island,  or  Beechey  Cape,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  entrance  to  Wellington  Channel,  unmistakable  evi 
dence  that  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  companions  were 
there  in  April,  1846.  There  they  found  many  articles 
known  to  belong  to  the  British  N"avy,  and  some  that 
were  the  property  of  the  Erebus  and  Terror,  the  ships 
under  the  command  of  Sir  John.    There  lay,  bleached 


H 


^:m 


•IN  : 


m 


m 


■* 


.'  , 


€? 


m 


'^; 


w 


m 


• 

to  the  wli 

canvas .  "w 

with  inde 

perfectly 

guide  boi 

face,  hav 

the  wind. 

used  to  di 

the  vesse 

campmer 

was  pine, 

and  six  a 

nailed  tc 

feet  in  ] 

that  the 

ice,  cans 

hastily,  a 

and  its 

They  als^ 

of   tin 

such  as 

for  packi 

for  a  sea  \ 

anvil  blc 

nants  of 

which  e\ 

numerou 

and  tbeJ 

barechai 

they  bad 

as  long  ai 

ers could 

on ;  the 

wool ;  80 

charcoal 

fibrous  fi 

Buttl 

melanch 

in  a  litth 

bearing 


THE  AMEAIGAN   ABOTIO  EXPEDITION. 


375 


to  the  whiteness  of  the  Burrounding  snow,  a  piece  of 
canvas ,  with  the  name  of  the  Terror,  marked  upon  it 
with  indestrac'ible  charcoal*.  It  was  very  faint,  yet 
perfectly  legible.  Near  it  was  a 
guide  board,  lying  flat  upon  its 
face,  having  been  prostrated  by 
tlie  wind.  It  had  evidently  been 
used  to  direct  exploring  pakies  to 
the  vessels,  or  rather,  to  the  en- 
campment on  shore.  The  board 
was  pine,  thirteen  inches  in  length 
and  six  and  a  half  in  breadth,  and 
nailed  to  a  boarding  pike  eight 
feet  in  length.  It  is  supposed 
that  the  sudden  opening  of  tho 
ice,  caused  Sir  John  to  depart 
hastily,  and  in  so  doing,  t}ii»  pike 
and  its  board  were  left  behind. 
They  also  found  a  large  number 
of  tin  canisters, 
such  as  are  used 
for  packing  meats 
for  a  sea  voyage;  an 
anvil  block :  rem- 
nants of  clothing, 
which  evinced,  %- 
numerous  patches 
and  their  thread- 
bare character,that 
they  h iid been  worn 
as  long  as  the  own- 
ers could  keep  them  AXTIL  BLOCK.  GUIDE  B0AJEU5. 
on ;  the  remains  of  an  India  Rubber  glove,  lined  with 
wool ;  some  old  sacks :  ^.cask,  or  tub,  parti v  filled  with 
charcoal,  and  an  unfiimPlf  rope-mat,  whicn,  like  other 
fibrous  fabrics,  wa^^^ached  white. 

But  the  most  inSrasting,  and  at  the  same  time  most 
melancholy  traces  of  the  navigators,  were  three  graves, 
in  a  little  sheltered  cove,  each  with  a  board  at  the  head, 
bearing  the  name  ol  the  sleeper  below.    These  inscrip- 


5.#.. 


376 


PBOOKES8    OF   AKOTIO   ])W0O^'EKX^ 


tions  testify  positively  when  Sir  John  and  his  compan 
ions  were  there.  The  board  at  the  head  of  the  grave 
on  the  left  has  the  following  inscription  : 

"  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  John  Torrinqtok,  who 
departed  this  life,  January  1st,  a  d.,  1846,  on  board 
her  Majesty's  ship  Terror,  aged  20  years." 

On  the  Center  one  —  "  Sacred  to  the  memory  of 
JoRN  HAivrNELL,  A.  B.,  of  her  Majesty's  ship  Erebus; 
died,  January  4th,  1846,  aged  25  years.  *  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  of  Hosts,  Consider  your  ways ;'  Haggai,  chap, 
i.  5,  T.» 

On  the  right — "Sacred  to  the  memory  of  W.  Braine, 
R.  M.,  of  her  Majesty's  ship  Erebus,  who  died  April  3d, 
1846,  aged  32  years..  '  Choose  you  this  day  whom  you 
will  serve :'  Joshua,  chap,  xxiv.,  part  of  the  15th  verse." 


'i  ■^. 


■?lKkUr 


THREE  GRAVES  AT  BEECHElT. 


How  much  later  than  April  3d  (the  date  upon  the 
last-named  head-board,)  Sir  John  remained  atBeechey, 
can  not  be  determinea.  They  saw  evidences  of  his 
having  gone  northward,  for  sledge  tracks  in  that  di- 
rection were  /isibie.  It  i'l^Ae  opinion  of  Dr.  Kane 
that,  on  the  Iveaking  up  o  Wb  ice,  in  the  spring,  Sir 
John  passed  earthward  with  his  ships  through  Welling- 
ton Channel,  into  the  great  Polar  basin,  and  that  he 
did  not  return.  This,  too,  is  the  opinion  of  Captain 
Penny,  and  he  zealously  urges  the  British  government 
to  send  a  powerful  screw  steamer  to  pass  through  thai 


"^ 


^ 


^^rnrni 


•fc.' 


*iL: 


ehaunel, 
coasts  \i 
another i 
BeecUey 
ference  \ 
the  seasc 
ent  year 
the  retui 
ion  cone 
panions. 
now  to 
Island," 
of  his  p] 
own  pari 
of  them, 
knew  w] 
privatioi 
ordinate 
moss-Ian 
white  w] 
gratory ' 
the  won 
nent  qui 
winter,  1 
mer ;  a; 
seasons 
Leavii 
through 
escaped 
ored  to  ( 
their  wi 
of  pack- 
tember, 
maining 
attempt 
picture, 
Inlet,  ai 
range  o 
within  1 
to  the  " 


TIIE  AMERICAJT   ABCTIO  SXPEDITION. 


879 


ebaunel,  and  explore  the  theoretically  more  hospitable 
coasts  beyond.  This  will  doubtless  be  undertaken 
another  season,  it  being  the  opinions  of  Captains  Parry, 
Beechey,  Sir  John  Koas,  and  others,  expressed  at  a  con- 
ference with  the  board  of  Admiralty,  in  September,  that 
the  season  was  too  far  advanced  to  attempt  it  the  pres- 
ent year.  Dr.  Kane,  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Grinnell,  since 
the  return  of  the  expedition,  thus  expresses  his  opin- 
ion concerning  the  safety  of  Sir  John  and  his  com- 
panions. After  saying,  ^'I  should  think  that  he  is 
now  to  be  8<^^ht  for  north  and  west  of  Oomwallis 
Island,"  he  adds,  ^^  as  to  the  chance  of  the  destruction 
of  his  party  by  the  casualties  of  ice,  the  return  of  our 
own  party  after  something  more  than  the  usual  share 
of  them,  is  the  only  fact  that  I  can  add  to  what  we 
knew  when  we  set  out.  The  hazards  from  cold  and 
privation  of  food  may  be  almost  looked  upon  as  sub- 
ordinate. The  snow-hut,  the  fii'e  and  light  from  the 
moss-lamp  fed  with  blubber,  the  seal,  the  narwhal,  the 
white  whale,  and  occasionally  abundant  stores  of  mi* 
gratory  birds,  would  sustain  vigorous  life.  The  scurvy, 
the  worst  visitation  of  explorers  deprived  of  permar 
nent  quarters,  is  more  rare  in  the  depths  of  a  polar 
winter,  than  in  the  milder  weather  of  the  moist  sum 
mer;  and  our  two  little  vessels  encountered  both 
Beasons  without  losing  a  man." 

Leaving  Beechey  Cape,  our  expedition  forced  its  way 
through  the  ice  to  Barrow's  Inlet,  where  they  narrowly 
escaped  being  frozen  in  for  the  winter.  They  endeav- 
ored to  enter  the  Inlet,  for  the  purpose  of  making  it 
their  winter  quarters,  but  were  prevented  by  the  mass 
of  pack-ice  at  its  entrance.  'It  was  on  the  4th  of  Sep* 
tember,  1850,  when  they  arrived  there,  and  after  re- 
maining seven  or  eight  days,  they  abandoned  the 
attempt  to  enter.  On  the  right  and  left  of  the  above 
picture,  are  seen  the  dark  rocks  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Inlet,  and  in  the  center  of  the  frozen  waters  and  the 
range  of  hills  beyond.  There  was  much  smooth  ice 
within  thetJWet,  and  while  the  vessels  lay  anchored 
to  the  "  fiwi?  officers  and  crew  exercised  and  amuse4 


m- 


!880 


.V   PB00BB8S  OF   AKOTIO  DI8COTRRY. 


fchemselveB  by  skating.  On  the  left  of  the  Inlet,  (In 
dioated  by  the  dark  conical  object,)  they  discovered  a 
Cairn,  (a  heap  of  itones  with  a  cavity,)  eight  or  ten 
feet  in  height,  which  was  erected  by  Captain  Ommaney 
of  the  English  Expedition  then  in  the  p  »lar  waters. 
Within  it  he  had  jlaced  two  letters,  for  Whom  it 
might  vjoncem."  Commander  De  Haven  also  depos- 
itod  V  letter  there.  It  is  believed  to  be  the  only  jxst- 
office  in  the  world,  free  for  tlie  nse  of  all  nations.  The 
rocks,  here,  presented  vast  fissures  mad^  ^>y  the  frost; 
and  at  the  foot  of  the  cliff  on  the  ri^ht  that  powerful 
agent  had  cast  down  v;    t  heaps  of  oebris. 

From  Barlow's  Inkt,  our  expedition  moved  slowly 
westward,  battling  with  the  ice  every  rood  of  the  way, 
until  they  reachoa  Griffin's  Island,  at  about  90"^  west 
longitude  from  Greenwich.  This  was  attained  on  the 
11th,  and  was  the  extreme  westing  made  by  the  exoo- 
dition.  All  beyond  seemed  impenetrable  ice ;  and, 
despairiug  of  makiiig  any  furthei*  discoveries  before  tho 
winter  should  set  in,  they  resolved  to  return  home. 
Turning  eastward,  they  hoped  to  reafch  Davis'  Strait 
by  the  southern  route,  before  the  cold  and  darkness 
came  on  ,  but  they  were  doomed  to  disappointment. 
Near  the  entrancs  to  Wellington  Channel  they  became 
coir<|>letely  locked  in  by  hummock-ice,  and  soon  found 
themselves  drifting  with  an  irresistible  tide  up  that 
channel  toward  the  pole. 

Now  began  the  most  perilous  adventures  of  the  navi- 
gators. The  summer  day  was  drawing  to  a  close ;  the 
diurnal  visits  of  the  pale  sun  were  rapidly  shortening. 
and  soon  the  long  polar  night,  with  all  its  darkness  ana 
horrors,  would  fdl  upon  them.  Slowly  they  drifted  in 
those  vast  fields  of  ice,  whither,  or  to  what  result,  thgy 
knew  not.  Locked  in  the  moving  yet  compact  mass ; 
liable  at  every  moment  to  be  crusted ;  far  away  from 
land  ;  the  mercury  sinking  daily  lower  and  lower  from 
the  zero  figure,  toward  the  point  where  that  metal 
freezes,  they  felt  small  hope  of  ever  reaching  home  again. 
Yet  they  prepared  for  winter  comforts  and  ^ijnter  sports, 
as  cheerfully  as  if  lying  safe  in  Barlow's  Inlet.    As  tho 


m-  i 


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rTF* 


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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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PhotDgraphic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)872-4503 


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■^ 


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t^ 


TUK  AUEHIOAN  AXOnO  SXPSDmCOS, 


9M 


«vinter  advanced,  the  erewd  of  both  the  veiisek  went  on 
Doard  the  larger  one.  Thej  unshipped  the  rudders  of 
each,  to  prevent  their  bein^  injured  oy  the  ice,  covered 
the  deck  of  the  Advance  with  felt,  prepu^d  their  stores, 
and  made  arrangements  for  endunng  the  long  winter, 
now  upon  them.  Physical  and  mental  activity  being 
necessary  for  the  preservation  of  health,  they  daily  ex- 
ercised  m  the  open  air  for  several  hours.  Tliey  built 
ice  huts,  hunted  the  huge  white  bears  and*  the  little  polar 
foxes,  and  when  the  darkness  of  the  winter  night  had 
spread  over  them -they  arranged  in-door  amiliements 
and  employments. 

Before  the  end  of  October,  the  sun  made  its  appeals 
ftDce  for  the  last  time,  and  the  awful  polar  night 
closed  in.  Early  in  November  they  wholly  abandoned 
the  Bescue,  and  both  crews  made  the  Advance  their 
permanent  winter  home.  The  cold  soon  became  in- 
tense ;  the  mercury  congealed,  and  the  spirit  tfaermomo' 
ter  indicated  46°  oelow  zero  I  Its  average  range  was 
30"'  to  36°.  They  had  drifted  helplessly  up  Wellington 
Channel,  almost  to  the 'latitude  trom  whence  Captain 
Penny  saw  an  open  sea,  and  which  all  believe  to  bo 
the  great  polar  oasin,  where  there  is  a  more  genial 
dime  ^an  that  which  intervenes  between  the  Arctic 
Circle  and  the  75th  degree.  Here,  when  almost  in 
sight  of  the  open  ocean,  that  mighty  polar  tide,  with 
its  vast  masses  of  ice,  suddenly  eblied,  and  our  little 
vessels  were  carried  back  as  resistlessly  as  before, 
through  Barrow's  Straits  into  Lancaster  Sound!  All 
this  while  the  immense  fields  of  hummock-ice  were 
moving,  and  the  vessels  were  in  hourlv  dan^r  of  being 
crushed  and  destroyed.  At  l^gtb,  while  driffcinc 
through  Barrow's  Straits,  the  congealed  mass,  as  if 
crushed  togethw  by  the  opposite  snores,  became  more 
compaqt,  and  the  Advance  was  elevated  almost  seven 
teet  by  Uie  stem,  and  keeled  two  feet  eight  inches,  star- 
board. In  this  position  she  remained,  with  very  little 
alteration  for  five  consecutive  months ;  for,  soon  after 
entering  I^t^n's  Bay  in  the  midst  of  the  winter,  the 
ice  becaine%ozen  in  one  immense  tract,  covering  mi] 


•■#■ 


m 


■^w 


ruooiuiss  OP  Aiicric  macovKKY. 


lions  otVaci*os.  Tints  frown  in,  sometimes  mora  tlmn  a 
huiidrocl  milos  from  land,  tlicy  drittod  slowly  along  tlio 
soiitliwost  coast  of  Baitings  Bay,  a  distance  of  more  tiian 
a  thousand  miles  from  Wellington  Channel.  For  elcvoi 
weeks  that  dreary  night  continued,  and  during  that 
time  tlio  disc  of  the  sun  was  never  seen  above  the  hori 
zon.  Yet  nature  was  not  wholly  forbidding  in  aspect 
Sometimes  the  Aui'oi'a  Eorcalis  would  ihish  up  still 
further  noiihwai'd ;  and  sometimes  Aurora  Parhelia- 
mock  snns  and  mock  inoons— would  appear  in  varied 
boautjgiRi;  the  starry  sky.  Brilliant,  too,  \vere  the  north- 
em  constellations ;  and  when  the  real  moon  was  at  its 
full,  it  made  its  statelv  circuit  in  the  heavens,  without 
descending  below  the  horizon,  and  lighted  up  the  vast 
piles  of  ice  with  a  pale  luster,  almost  as  great  as  the 
morning  twilights  of  more  genial  skies. 

Around  the  vessels  the  crews  built  a  wall  of  icei;  and 
in  ice  huts  they  stowed  away  their  cordage  and  stores 
to  make  room  ibr  exercise  on  the  decks.  Thev  organ- 
ized a  theatrical  company,  and  amused  themselves  and 
the  officers  with  comedy  well  peiformed.    Behind  the 

Eieces  of  hummock  each  actor  learned  his  part,  and 
y  means  of  calico  they  transfonned  tliemselves  into 
female  cliaracters,  as  occasion  required.  These  dramas 
were  acted  on  the  deck  of  the  Advance,  sometimes 
while  the  thermometer  indicated  30°  below  zero,  and 
actors  and  audiences  highly  enjoyed  the  fun.  They 
also  went  in  parties  during  that  l(mg  night,  fully  annea, 
to  hunt  the  polar  bear,  the  ffrim  monarch  of  the  frozen 
Korth,  on  which  occasions  they  often  encountered  peril* 
ous  adventures.  They  played  at  foot-ball,  and  exercised 
themselves  in  drawing  sledges,  heavily  laden  with  pi'O- 
visions.  Five  hours  c«  each  twenty-four,  they  thus  exer- 
cised in  the  open  air,  and  c  "^^  a  week  each  man  waslied 
his  whole  body  in  cold  y  water.  Serioub  sickness 
was  consequently  avoidevi,  and  the  scurvy  which  a^ 
tacked  them  soon  yielded  to  remedies. 
^  Often  during  that  fearful  night,  they  expected  the 
disaster  of  havmg  their  vessels  crushed,  jkll  through 
NovomlHM*  and, December,  before  the  ice  TOcame  fost 


\  ^ 


rUK  AIIKKICAN   ABCmO  KXI'KDITION. 


m 


tlioy  6lei>t  ill  their  clotlios,  with  kimpeacks  on  thoir 
backs,  and  elodgcs  uiH>n  the  ice,  laden  witii  etorcs,  not 
knowing  at  what  moment  the  vessels  might  bo  deuiol' 
Hhcd,  and  themselves  foroed  to  leave  them,  and  mako 
tlicir  way  toward  land.  On  the  Sth  of  December,  and 
tiie  23d  of  January,  they  actnally  lowered  their  boats 
and  stood  upon  the  ice,  for  the  crushing  masses  were 
making  the  timbers  of  the  gallant  vobselcreak  and  its 
decks  to  rise  in  the  center.  They  were  then  ninety 
miles  from  land,  and  hope  hardly  whispered  an  encour- 
aging idea  of  life  bein^  sustained.  On  the  laMr  occa- 
sion, when  ofiicera  and  crew  stood  upon  the  ice,  with 
the  ropes  of  their  provision  sledges  m  their  hands,  a 
terrible  snow-drift  came  fi'om  the  northeast,  and  intense ' 
darkness  shrouded  them.  Had  the  vessel  then  been 
crushed,  all  must  have  perished.  But  God,  who  ruled 
the  storm,  also  put  foiih  His  protecting  arm  and  saved 
them. 

Early  in  February  the  northern  horizon  began  to  be 
streaked  with  gorgeous  twilight,  the  herald  ot  the  ap- 
proaching king  oi  day ;  and  on  the  ISth  the  disc  of 
the  sun  nrst  appeared  above  the  horizon.  As  its  golden 
rim  rose  above  the  glittering  snow-drifts  and  piles  of 
iee,  three  hearty  cheers  went  up  from  those  hardy  mar 
iners,  and  they  welcomed  their  deliverer  from  the 
*  chains  of  frost  as  cordially  as  those  of  old  who  chanted, 

"Sm  I  the  donquering  hero  comes, 
Sound  the  trunapet,  beat  the  drama.** 

Day  after  day  it  rose  higher  and  higher,  and  while  the 
pallid  faces  of  the  voyagers,  bleach^  during  that  long 
night,  darkened  by  its  l>eam8,  the  vast  masses  of  ice 
began  to  yidd  to  its  fervid  influences.  The  scurvy  dis- 
appeared, and  from  that  time,  until  their  arrival  home, 
not  a  man  snf^^d  from  sickness.  As  they  slowly 
drifted,  through  Davis'  Straits,  and  the  ice  gave  indica- 
tions of  breaking  up,  the  voyagers  made  preparations 
for  sailing.  T^e  Bescue  was  re-occupied,  (May  13th, 
1851,)  ana  her  stone-post,  which  had  been  broken  by 
the  ice  in  Barrow's  Straits,  was  repaired.  To  accom- 
plish ^isy  they  were  obliged  to  dig  away  the  ice  whicb 


# 


888 


FROGBKSg  or  ASanO  DBBOOVBBT. 


wftB  fironi  12  to  14  feet  tliiok  around  her,  as  represented 
in  the  engraving.  Tbeyreshipped  their  rudders  ;  re> 
moved  tlie  felt  covering ;  idacM  their  stores  on  deck, 
and  then  patiently  awaited  the  disruption  of  the  ^ 
This  event  was  very  sudden  and  apptulinff.  It  began 
^  to  give  way  on  the  5th  of  June,  ana  in  the  space  of 
twenty  minutes  the  whole  mass,  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach,  became  one  vast  field  of  moving  floes.  On  the 
10th  of  June^  they  emerged  into  open  water,  a  little 
9out)|.of  the  Arctic  Circle,  in  latitude  6i°  SC.  They 
im»i|iktely  repaired  to  Oodhaven,  on  the  coast  of 
Oreenrad,  where  they  refitted,  and,  unappalled  by  the 
perils  through  which  they  had  just  passed,  they  once 
more  turned  their  prows  northward  to  encounter  anew 
tlie  ice  squadrons  of  Bafiin's  Bay.  Again  they  trav- 
ersed the  coast  of  Greenland  to  about  the  73d  de- 
gree, when  they  bore  to  the  westward,  and  on  tiie  7tb 
and  8th  of  July,  passed  the  English  whaling  fleet  near 
the  Dutch  Islands.  Onward  they  preset  through 
the  accumulating  ice  to  Baffin's  Island,  where,  od 
the  11th,  they  were  joined  by  the  Prince  Albert,  then 
out  upon  another  cruise.  They  continued  in  com- 
pany until  the  8d  of  August,  when  the  Albert  departed 
for  the  westward,  determined  to  try  the  more  south 
em  passage.  Here  asain  our  expeaition  encountered 
vast  fields  of  hummock-ice,  and  were  subjected  to  th^ 
most  immment  perils.  The  floating  ice,  as  if  moved  hy 
adverse  currents,  tumbled  in  huge  masses,  and  reared 
upon  the  sides  of  the  sturdy  little  vessels  Hke  monsters 
of  the  deep  intent  upon  destruction.  These  masses 
broke  in  the  bulwarks,  and  sometimes  fell  over  upon 
the  decks  with  terrible  force,  like  rocks  rolled  over  a 
plain  by  mountain  tcnrrents.  The  noise  was  feariul ;  so 
deafening  that  the  mariners  could  scarcely  hear  each 
other's  voices.  The  sounds  of  these  rollini^  masses,  to- 
gether with  the  rending  of  the  icebergs  fating  near, 
and  the  vast  floes,  produced  a  din  like  the  discharge  of 
a  thousand  pieces  of  ordnance  upon  a  field  of  battle. 
Finding  the  north  and  west  closed  against  furthei 
progress,  by  impenetrable  ice,  the  brave  De  Haven  wai 


u 


>re8entod 
iers;  i^ 

on  deck, 
f  the  ^ 

It  began 
space  of 
5ye  conld 
On  the 
',  a  little 
They 

coast  of 
edbythe 
hey  once 
ter  anew 
ley  tra?. 

73d  de- 
n  Dhe  7tb 
Seet  near 

through 
here,  od 
)ert,  then 

in  corn- 
departed 
re  sooth 
ountered 
id  toth^ 
floved  by 
d  reared 
monsters 
>  masses 
^er  upon 
I  over  a 
Eirfxil;so 
ear  each 
isses,  to* 
dg  near, 
hargeof 
f  battle. 

furthei 
yen  wai 


^^^r 


-  I^W 


TUB  AMBBIOiUI  AMCTtb  MMrKDKttOS. 


898 


balkod,  mmL  turning  bii  ves 8«U  kpmeiwsfd,  thej  eame 
out  into  an  open  eca,  somewhat  crippled,  but  not  a 
plank  serionsly  stai'ted.    Daring  a  storm  on  the  banks 

f  Newfoundland,  a  thousand  miles  from  Kew  York, 
e  vessels  sarted  company.  The  Advance  arrived 
safely  at  thcr^Kavy  Yard  at  Brooklpi  on  the  dOCk  of 
September,  and  the  Rescne  joined  her  tbere  a  few  dayir 
afterward.  Toward  the  close  of  Octobo*,  the  govern^ 
ment  resigned  the  vessels  into  the  hands  of  Mr.  Griii- 
nell,  to  be  used  in  other  service,  but  with  the  stlpnlation 
that  they  are  to  be  subject  to  t^  order  of  the^ftMletary 
of  the  I^avy  in  the  spring,  if  required  Ibr^pother 
ext«dition  in  search  of  Sir  John  FrankHn. 

We  have  thus  given  a  very  brief  account  of  the  prin- 
cipal events  of  interest  connected  with  tiie  American 
Arctic  Expedition;  afull  report  of  which,  and  detailed 
narratives  have  been  published.  Aside  fh>m  the  suo- 
cesB  whicii  attended  onr  little  vessels  in  encountering  the 
perils  of  the  polar  seas,  there  are  associations  which  must 
foFcver  hallow  the  efibrt  as  one  <^the  noblest  exhibitions 
of  the  true  glory  of  nations.  The  navies  of  America  and 
England  have  before  met  upon  the  ocean,  but  they  met 
for  deadly  strife.  Now,  too,  they  met  for  strife,  equally 
determined,  but  not  with  each  other.  They  met  m  the 
holy  cause  of  benevolence  and  human  sympathy,  to 
battle  with  Aelements  beneath  the  Arctic  Circle ;  and 
the  chivalrieneroiem  which  the  few  stout  hearts  of  the 
two  nations  displayed  in  that  terrible  conflict,  redounds 
athousand-fola  more  to  the  glory  of  the  actors,  their 
governments,  and  the  race,  than  if  fournscore  .  a^pa, 
with  ten  thousand  armed  men  had  fought  ibr  the  n.  as* 
tery  of  each  other  upon  the  broad  ocean,  and  battered 
hulks  and  marred  corpses  had  gone  down  to  the  coral 
caves  of  the  sea,  a  dreadful  offering  to  the  demon  of 
Discord.  In  the  latter  event,  troops  of  widows  and  or- 
phan ctiildren  would  have  sent  up  a  cry  of  wail ;  now, 
the  heroes  advanced  manfully  to  rescue  husbands  and 
fathers  to  restore  them  to  their  wives  and  children. 
How  glorious  the  thought  I  and  how  suggestive  of  the 
beauty  of  that  fast  approaching  day,  when  tha  untl  w 


; 


894 


TuoQuam  Of  Ascmo  moo^sr. 


i» 


\¥, 


•hall  Bit  down  in  peaoo  m  vnitod  ekildron  of  om 

household. 

WiNTBB  IK  TBB  AscmO  OOBAV.  fl 

The  following4pnrativo,  tliowing  tho  t4^  the  wintot 
ot  1851-52  WM  passed  by  those  enga^  in  the  i*ocon 
arctio  expedition,  is  from  the  official  repoH  lundo  by 
lient.  De  Haven,  tiie  Commander  of  the  expedition 
^  On  the  morning  of  the  13th  Sept.,  1850,  the  wind 
hayiiMyoiodefated  sufficiently,  wo  got  nndor  way,  and 
M'orkflg  our  way  throngh  some  streams  of  ice,  arrived 
in  a  few  hours  at  ^  Griffitii's '  Island,  nnder  the  lee  of 
which  we  found  our  consort  made  fast  to  the  eliorc, 
where  she  had  taken  shelter  in  the  gale,  her  crow  Lav- 
«  ing  sufiered  a  good  deal  from  the  inclemency  of  the 
1^  weather.  In  bringing  to  nnder  the  lee  of  the  island, 
she  had  the  misfortune  to  spring  her  rudder,  so  tliat  on 
joining  us,  it  was  with  much  difficulty  she  could  steer. 
To  insure  her  safety  and  more  rapid  progress,  she  was 
taken  in  tow  b^  the  Advance,  when  she  bore  up  witb 
a  fine  breeze  from  the  westward.  Off  Gape  Martyr, 
we  left  tiie  English  squadron  under  Capt.  Austin. 
About  ten  miles  f^li;her  to  the  east,  the  two  vessels  un- 
der Capt  Penny,  and  that  nnder  Sir  John  Eoss,  were 
seen  i^cured  near  the  land.  At  8  p.  igj^we  had  ad- 
vanced as  far  as  Cape  Hotham.  Thence  as  far  as  the 
increasing  darkness  of  the  night  enabled  us  to  see,  there 
was  nothing  to  obstruct  our  progress,  except  the  bay 
ice.  This,  with  a  good  breeze,  would  not  have  im- 
peded us  much ;  butimfortunately  the  wind,  when  it  was 
most  I'equired,  miled  ns.  Tlio  snow,  with  which  the 
suiiaco  of  the  water  was  covered,  rapidly  cemented, 
^  and  formed  a  tenacious  coat,  through  which  it  was  im- 
possible with  all  our  appliances  to  ^rce  the  vessels.  At 
8  p.  M.,  they  came  to  a  dead  stand,  some  ten  miles  to 
the  east  of  Barlow^s  Inlet.  v 

" The  ibllowing  day  the  wiiid  hauled  to  the  southward, 
from  which  quaitcr  it  lasted  till  the  19tli.  Diu'ing  this 
pci*iod  the  young  icQ  was  |>rokon,  its  edges  squeezed  «» 


OM 


f^'  ■ 


k 


liko  liam 
it  all  AM 

stood  tli< 

inadoiti 

in  hoi)es 

gomootl 

security 

iteverity 

of  otnr  D 

aDxions 

whenco 

extent  o: 

"Intl 
wind, w 
we  were 
seen  on 
was  seoi 
west  of 
of  Well 
ing  to  1 
driven  1 
On  the 
OS  a  801 
western 
the  wii 
bringio 
midnig 
to  man 
her  froi 
iinniovi 

»*W< 
the  22( 
asinnl 
(ion,  al] 
tonr  m 
This  It 
termin 
bave 
sonal  * 


i 


WINTKll  IN  TUK  AMOnO  OOIUM. 


896 


liko  liftmiaodcs,  and  ouo  flee  OTerrnn  bj  Motlior  imtil 
it  ftll  AMumed  tlio  Appoarance  of  lioftvy  ioo.  Tlio  vot- 
eelf  received  some  lioftTy  iii]ie  iVoin  it,  but  tliej  with- 
stood  tkom  witboiit  injnrj.    Wlienoter  » iiool  ot'  water 


inado  its  a^^araneo,  eTer|^ff»rt  was  made  to  reaeli  it, 
in  lioi)e8  that  it  wonkl  loac^s  into  IkMliey  Island,  off 
gomo  otbor  place  whore  tlie  vessel  mflriit  m>  placed  in 


into  IkMliey  Island,  off 
esel  mnriit  m>  placed  in 
Mcarity ;  ior  the  winter  set  in  unusually  early,  and  the 
oeverity  with  which  it  oommenccd,  Ibrbado  alf  hopes 
of  onr  being  able  to  retnni  this  season.  I  now  beeanui 
aDxions  to  attain  a  point  in  the  neighborhood^ J'roni 
whence  by  means  of  Jand  parties,  in  the  spring,  a  fSbdly 
extent  of  Wellinfi^n  Channel  might  be  examined. 

^  In  the  mean  time,  under  the  influence  of  the  south 
wind,  we  were  being  sot  up  the  channel.  On  the  IStli 
we  were  above  Cape  Bowden,  the  most  northern  iK>int 
seen  on  this  shore  oy  Parrv.  The  laud  on  both  sliorcs 
was  seen  much  further,  and  trcnd(^considorabl^  to  tlie 
west  of  north.  To  accouut  for  thV  drift,  the  hxed  ice 
of  Wellington  Channel,  which  wo  had  oliscrvcd  in  ]inss- 
ing  to  the  westward,  must  have  been  broken  up  and 
dnycn  to  the  southward  by  the  heavy  gale  of  the  12tii. 
On  the  i6th  the  wind  veered  to  the  north,  which  gave 
ns  a  southerly  set,  forcing  us  at  the  same  tune  with  the 
western  shore.  Tliis  did  not  last  long ;  for  the  next  day 
the  wind  haii|kl  again  to  the  south,  and  blow  fresh, 
bringing  the  i^  in  upon  us  with  nuich  pressure.  At 
midni|;ht  it  broke  uu  all  aroimd  us,  so  that  wo  had  work 
to  nwmtain  the  Aa  vance  in  a  safe  position,  and  keep 
her  from  being  separated  from  her  consort,  which  was 
immovably  fixed  in  the  center  of  a  lai'ge  floe. 

"We  continued  to  dritl  slowly  to  tlio  N. N.  W.,  until 
t\\Q  32d,  when  our  progress  appeared  to  be  aiTCSted  by 
a  small  low  island,  which  was  discovered  in  that  direc- 
tion, about  seven  miles  distant.  A  channel  of  three  or 
fonr  miles  in  width  separated  it  from  Comwallis  Island. 
This  latter  island,  trending  N.  W.  fi-om  our  ])08ition, 
teroiinated  abruptly  in  an  elevated  ea)X),  to  which  I 
have  mv^tliQ  name  of  Manning,  after  a  warm  |>cr- 
sonal  mend  and  ardent  supjwrtcr  of  the  cx))odition. 


396 


PttOOBESS  OF    ^KOnO  DUOOVEJVr. 


Between  Ooniwallis  Island  and  some  distant  hiffh  land 
visible  in  the  north,  appeared  a  wide  channel  leading 
to  the  westward.  A  dark,  misty-looking  clond  which 
hung  over  it,  (technically  termed  frost-smoke,)  was  in- 
dicative of  mnch  open  wa^  in  that  direction.  This 
was  the  directioinpin  which  my  instmctions,  referring  to 
the  investigations  of  the  National  Observatory,  concern 
ing  the  winds  and  currents  of  the  ocean,  directed  me  to 
look  for  open  water.  Nor  was  the  open  water  the  only 
indication  that  presented  itself  in  confirmation  of  this 
theoratical  conjecture  as  to  a  milder  climate  in  that 
direction.  As  we  entered  Wellinffton  Channel,  the 
sisns  of  animal  life  became  more  abundant,  and  Cap- 
tarn  Pennv,  commander  of  one  of  the  English  expe- 
ditions, who  afterward  penetrated  on  sledges  mnch 
toward  the  region  of  the  '  frostnsmoke,'  mnch  further 
than  it  was  possible  for  ns  to  do  in  onr  vessels  reported 
that  he  actually  arrjked  on  the  borders  of  this  o|)cii  sea. 
"Thus,  these  admirably  drawn  instructions,  deriving 
arguments  from  the  enlarged  and  comprehensive  sys- 
tem of  physical  research,  not  only  pointed  with  em- 
phasis to  an  unknown  sea  into  which  FranUin  had 
probably  found  his  way,  but  directed  me  to  search  for 
traces  of  his  expedition  in  the  very  channel  at  the 
entrance  of  whicn  it  is  now  ascertained  he  had  passed 
his  first  winter.  The  direction  in  whi^h  search  with 
most  chances  of  success  is  now  to  be  made  for  the 
missing  expedition,  or  for  traces  of  it,  is  no  doubt  in 
the  direction  which  is-  so  clearly  pointed  out  in  my  in- 
structions. To  the  channel  which  appeared  to  lead 
into  the  open  sea  over  which  the  cloud  of  *  frost-smoke' 
hung  as  a  sign,  I  have  given  the  name  of  Maury,  after 
the  distinguished  gentleman  at  the  head  of  our  National 
Observatory,  whose  theory  with  regard  to  an  open  sea 
t^  the  north  is  likely  to  be  realized  through  this  chan- 
nilJ  To  the  large  mass  of  land  visible  between  N.  W. 
to  N.  N.  E.,  I  gave  the  name  of  GrinneM,  in  honor  of 
the  head  and  heart  of  the  man  in  whoso  philanthropic 
mind  originated  the  idea  of  this  cxpedit?'(m,./ind  ^^ 
whose  munificence  it  owes  its  existence. 


\  • 


WUrilCR  IN   THE  ABCriO  00£AN. 


397 


'*  To  a  remarkable  peak  bearing  N.  K.  E.  from  iig, 
distant  about  forty  miles,  was  given  the  name  of 
Mount  Franklin.  An  inlet  or  harbor  immediately  to 
tho  north  of  Cape  Bowden  was  discovered  by  Mr. 
Griffin  in  his  land  excursion  from  Point  Innes,  on  tho 
27th  of  August,  and  has  received  the  name  of  Griffin 
Inlet.  The  small  island  mentioned  before  was  called 
Murdaugh's  Island,  after  the  acting  mastCT  of  the  Ad- 
vaijce.  The  eastern  shore  of  Wellington  Channel  ai> 
peared  to  run  parallel  with  the  westem,  but  it  became 
quite  low,  and  being  covered  with  snow,  could  not  be 
aistinguished  with  certainty,  so  that  its  continuity  with 
the  high  land  to  the  north  was  not  ascertained.  Some 
small  pools  of  opan.  water  appearing  near  us,  an  attempt 
ms  made  about  fifty  yards,  but  all  our  combined 
efforts  were  of  no  avail  in  extricating  the  Rescue  from 
her  icy  cradle.  A  change  of  wind  not  only  closed  tho 
ice  up  again,  but  threatened  to  gire  a  severe  nip.  We 
unshipped  her  rudder  and  placed  it  out  of  harm's  way. 

"  September  22d,  was  an  uncomfortable  day.  The 
wind  was  from  N.  E.  with  snow.  From  an  early  hour 
in  the«noming,  the  floes  began  to  be  pressed  together 
with  80  much  tbrce  that  their  edge  was  thrown  up  in 
immense  ridges  of  rugged  hummocks.  The  Advance 
was  heavily  nipped  between  two  floes,  and  the  ice  was 
piled  up  so  high  above  the  rail  on  the  starboard  side 
as  to  threaten  to  come  on  board  and  sink  us  with  its 
weight.  All  hands  were  occupied  in  keeping  it  out. 
The  pressure  and  commotion  did  not  cease  till  near 
midnight,  when  we  were  very  glad  to  have  a  respite 
from  our  labors  and  fears.  The  next  day  wo  were 
threatened  with  a  similar  scene,  but  it  fortunately 
ceased  in  a  short  time.  For  the  remainder  of  Septem- 
ber, and  until  the  4th  of  October,  the  vessels  drifted 
but  little.  The  winds  were  very  light,  the  thermonaeter 
fell  to  minus  12,  and  ice  formed  over  the  pools  in  sight, 
Bufficiently  strong  to  travel  upon.  We  were  now 
strongly  impressed  with  the  belief  that  the  ice  had  be- 
come fixed  for  the  winter,  and  that  we  should  be  able 
to  send  out  traveling  parties  from  the  advanced  position 


:,^.:fl- 


398 


PBOOBE88  07  ABCnC  DISOOVEBT. 


for  the  examination  of  the  lands  to  the  northward 
StimiQated  by  this  fair  prospect,  another  attempt  wan 
made  to  reach  the  shore  in  order  to  establish  a  depo^ 
of  provisions  at  or  near  Cape  Manning,  which  would 
materiallv  facilitate  the  progress  of  our  parties  in  the 
spring ;  but  the  ice  was  still  found  to  be  detached  froir 
the  shore,  and  a  narrow  lane  of  water  cut  us  from  it. 

"  During  the  interval  of  comparative  quiet,  prelimi* 
nary  measures  were  taken  for  heating  the  Advance 
and  increasing  her  quarters,  so  as  to  accomodate  the 
officers  and  crew  of  Doth  vessels.  No  stoves  had  a» 
yet  been  used  in  either  vessel ;  indeed  they  could  not 
well  be  put  up  without  placing  a  large  quantity  of  store? 
and  fiiel  upon  the  ice.  The  attempt  was  made  to  do 
this,  but  a  sudden  crack  in  the  floe  where  it  appeared 
strongest,  causing  the  loss  of  several  tons  of  coal,  con- 
vincea  us  that  it  was  not  yet  sate  to  do  so.  It  was  not 
imtU  the  20th  of  Ocibber,  we  got  fires  below.  Ten 
days  later  the  housingcloth  was  put  over,  and  the  offi- 
cers and  crew  of  the  Kescue  ordered  on  board  the  Ad- 
vance for  the  winter.  Koom  was  found  on  the  deck  of 
the  Rescue  for  many  of  the  provisions  removed  fiioiu 
the  hold  of  this  vessel.  Still  a  large  quantity  had  to 
be  placed  on  the  ice.  The  absence  of  fire  below  had 
caused  much  discomfort  to  all  hands  ever  since  the  be- 
ginning of  September,  not  so  much  from  the  low  tem- 
perature, as  from  the  accumulation  of  moisture  bj 
condensation,  which  congealed  as  the  temperature  de* 
creased,  and  covered  the  wood  work  of  our  apartments 
with  ice.  ^is  state  of  things  soon  began  to  work  its 
effect  upon  the  health  of  the  crews.  Several  cases  of 
scurvy  appeared  among  them,  and  notwithstanding  the 
indefatigable  attention  and  active  treatment  resorted  to 
by  the  medical  officers,  it  could  not  be  era^licated — its 
pron*ess,  however,  was  checked, 
"-fil  through  October  and  November,  we  were  drifted 
to  and  fro  by  the  changing  wind,  but  never  passing  ont 
of  Wellington  Channel.  On  the  1st  of  November,  the 
new  ice  had  attained  the  thickness  of  37  inches.  Still, 
frequent  breaks  would  occur  in  itj  often  in  fearful  prox 


\  ' 


WINTEA  IS   THK   AUOTIO   OOEAM. 


899 


tmity  to  the  vessels.  Hummocks  consisting  of  massir^ 
granite-like  blocks,  would  be  thrown  up  to  the  height 
of  twenty,  and  even  thirty  feet.  This  action  in  the  ice 
was  accompanied  with  a  variety  of  sounds  impossible 
to  be  descnbed,  but  when  heard  never  failed  to  carry  a 
feeling  of  awe  into  the  stoutest  hearts.  .  In  the  stillness 
of  an  arctic  night,  they  could  be'*heard  several  miles, 
and  often  was  the  rest  of  all  hands  disturbed  by  them. 
To  guard  against  the  worst  that  could  happen  to  us  — 
the  destruction  of  the  vessels  —  the  boats  were  prepared 
and  sledges  built.  Thirty  davs'  provisions  were  placed 
in  for  all  bands,  together  with  tents  and  blanket  bags 
for  sleeping  in.  Besides  this,  each  man  and  officer  had 
his  knapack  containing  an  extra  suit  of  clothes.  These 
were  all  kept  in  readiness  for  use  at  a  moment's  notice. 
"For  the  sake  of  wholesome  exercise,  as  well  as  to  in- 
ore  the  people  to  ice  traveling,  frequent  excursions  were 
made  with  our  laden  sledges.  The  officers  usually  took 
the  lead  at  the  drag  ropes,  and  they,  as  well  as  the  mei> 
underwent  the  labor  of  surmounting  the  rugged  hum 
mocks,  with  great  cheerfulness  and  zeal.  Notwith- 
standing the  low  temperature,  all  hands  usually  returned 
in  a  profuse  perspiration.  We  had  also  other  sources 
of  exercise  and  amusements,  such  as  foot-ball,  skating, 
sliding,  racing,  with  theatrical  representations  on  hou- 
dajs  and  national  anniversaries.  These  amusements 
were  continued  throughout  the  winter,  and  contributed 
very  materially  to  the  cheerfulness  and  general  good 
iiealth  of  all  hands.  The  drift  had  set  us  gradually  to 
the  S.  E.,  until  we  were  about  five  miles  to  %e  S.  "W. 
d  Beechey  Island.  In  this  position  we  remained  com- 
paratively stationary  about  a  week.  We  once  more 
began  to  entertain  a  hope  that  we  had  become  fixed  for 
the  winter,  but  it  proved  a  vain  one,  for  on  the  last  day 
of  November  a  strong  wind  from  the  westward  set  in, 
with  tfiick  snowy  weather.  The  wind  created  an  im- 
mediate movement  in  the  ice.  Several  fractures  took 
place  near  us,  and  many  heavy  hummocks  were  thrown 
up.  The  floe  in  which  our  vessels  were  imbedded,  was 
being  rapidlv  encroached  upon,  so  that  we  were  in  nao* ' 


too 


lUCOOKESS   OF  AltCTIC   DISOOTEKf. 


mcntary  fear  of  the  ico  breaking  from  aronnd  them, 
aiid  that  thoy  would  bo  once  more  broken  out  and  loft 
to  tho  tender  mercies  of  the  crashing  floes. 

**  On  tho  following  day  (the  1st  of  December)  tbo 
weather  cleared  off,  and  tho  few  honrs  of  twih'ght 
which  we  had  abont  noon,  enabled  ns  to  ^t  a  glimpse 
of  the  land.  As  well  as  we  conld  make  it  ont,  we  ap- 
peared to  be  off  Gascoigne  Inlet.  We  were  now  clear 
of  Wellington  Channel,  and  in  the  fair  way  of  Lan- 
caster Sound,  to  be  set  either  up  or  down,  at  the  mercy 
of  the  prevailing  winds  and  currents.  We  were  not 
long  leit  in  donbt  as  to  the  direction  we  had  to  pursue. 
Tho  winds  prevailed  from  the  westward,  and  our  drift 
was  steady  and  rapid  toward  the  mouth  of  the  Sound. 
The  prospect  before  us  was  now  any  thing  but  cheering. 
Wo  wore  deprived  of  our  last  fond  hope,  that  ;of  be- 
coming fixed  in  some  position  whence  operations  could 
be  carried  on  by  means  of  traveling  parties  in  the 
spring.  Tho  vessels  were  fast  being  set  out  of  the 
region  of  search.  Nor  was  this  our  only  source  of  un- 
easiness. Tho  line  of  our  drift  was  from  two  to  five 
miles  from  the  north  shore,  and  whenever  the  moving 
ice  met  with  any  of  the  ca])es  or  projecting  points  of 
land,  tho  obstruction  would  cause  fractures  in  it,  ex- 
tending off  to  and  tar  beyond  us.  Cape  Hurd  was  the 
firet  and  most  prominent  point — wo  were  bat  two 
miles  from  it  on  the  3d  of  December.  Nearly  all  day 
tho  ice  was  both  seen  and  heard  to  be  in  constant  mo- 
tion at  no  great  distance  from  us.  In  the  evening  a 
citick  on  <!^r  floe  took  place  not  more  than  twenty-hvo 
yards  ahead  of  tho  Advance.  It  openc(|  in  the  course 
of  tho  evening  to  the  width  of  190  yards. 

,"  No  further  disturbance  took  place  until  noon  of  the 
6th,  when  we  were  somewhat  startled  by  the  familiar 
and  unmistakable  sound  of  the  ice  grinding  against 
tho  side  of  the  ship.  Going  on  deck,  I  perceived  tliat 
another  crack  had  taken  place,  passing  along  the  length 
of  tho  vessel.  It  did  not  open  more  than  a  foot ;  this, 
however,  was  suiHcient  to  liberate  the  vessel,  and  she 
roM  several  inches  bodily,  having  become  more  buoy- 


WINTKR  IN  THE  ARCTIO  (XJEAW. 


401 


aiit  since  sLo  froze  in.  The  follo"v*tnff  day,  in  the 
evening  the  crack  opened  several  yards,  leaving  the 
sides  oi'  the  Ad^  ance  entirely  free,  and  she  was  once 
more  supported  by  and  rode  in  her  own  element.  We 
were  not,  though,  by  any  means,  in  a  pleasant  situation. 
The  floes  were  considerably  broken  in  all  directions 
around  us,  and  one  crack  had  taken  place  between  the 
two  vessels.  The  Eescue  was  not  disturbed  in  her  bed 
of  ice. 

"December  Tth,  at  8  A.  M.,  the  crack  in  which  we 
were,  had  opened  and  formed  a  lane  of  water  fifty-six 
feet  wide,  communicating  ahead  at  the  distance  of  sixty 
feet  with  ice  of  about  one  foot  in  thickness,  which  had 
formed  since  the  3d.  The  vessel  was  secured  to  the 
largest  floe  near  us  (that  on  which  our  spare  stores  were 
deposited.)  At  noon,  the  ice  was  again  in  motion, 
and  began  to  close,  affording  us  the  pleasant  prospect 
of  an  inevitable  nip  between  two  floes  of  the  neaviest 
kind.  In  a  short  time  the  prominent  points  took  our 
side,  on  the  starboard,  just  about  the  main-rigging,  and 
on  the  port  under  the  counter,  and  at  the  fore-rigging ; 
thus  bnnging  three  points  of  pressure  in  such  a  position 
that  it  muRtjhave  proved  fatal  to  a  larger  or  less 
strengthened  vessel.  The  Advance,  however,  stood  it 
bravdy.  After  trembling  and  groaning  in  every  joint, 
the  ice  passed  under  and  raised  her  about  two  and 
a  half  feet.  She  was  let  down  again  for  a  moment, 
and  then  her  stem  was  raised  about  five  feet.  Her 
bows  being  unsupported,  were  depressed  almost  as 
much.  In  this  uncomfortable  position  we  remained. 
The  wind  blew  a  gale  from  the  eastward,  and  the  ice 
all  around  was  in  dreadful  commotion,  excepting,  for- 
tunately, that  in  immediate  contact  with  us.  The  com- 
motion in  the  ice  continued  all  through  the  night;  and 
wo  were  in  momentary  expectation  of  the  destruction 
of  both  vessels.  The  easterly  gale  had  set  us  some 
two  or  three  miles  to  the  west.  As  soon  as  it  was  light 
enough  to  see  on  the  9th,  it  was  discovered  that  the 
heavy  ice  on  which  the  Rescue  had  been  imbedded 
for  so  lq|ig  a  time,  was  entirely  broken  np,  and  piled 


40S 


PBOQBB98  or  ABCriO  DtSOOVMUT. 


ap  around  her  1$  massive  hnmmocks.  On  her  pnmpi 
biing  sounded,!  was  gratified  to  learn  that  she  remained 
tight,  notwithstanding  the  immense  straining  and 
pressure  she  must  have  endured. 

''  During  this  period  of  trial,  as  well  as  in  all  former 
and  subsequent  ones,  I  could  not  avoid  being  struck 
with  the  calmness  and  decision  of  the  officers,  as  well 
as  the  subordination  and  sood  conduct  of  the  men, 
without  an  exception.  Each  one  knew  the  imminence 
of  the  peril  that  surrounded  us,  and  was  prepared  to 
abide  it  with  a  stout  heart.  There  was  no  noise,  no 
confusion.  I  did  not  detect,  even  in  the  moment  when 
the  destruction  of  the  vessel  seemed  inevitable,  a  sin- 
gle desponding  look  among  the  whole  crew ;  on  the 
contrary,  each  one  seemed  resolved  to  do  his  whole 
duty,  and  every  thins  went  on  cheerily  and  bravely. 
For  my  own  part,  I  had  become  quite  an  invalid,  so 
much  so  as  to  prevent  my  taking  an  active  part  m  the 
duties  of  the  vessel  as  I  had  always  done,  or  even  from 
incurring  the  exposure  necessary  to  proper  exercise. 
However,  I  felt  no  apprehensions  that  the  vessel  would 
not  be  properly  taken  care  of^  for  I  had  perfect  confi- 
dence in  one  and  all  by  whom  I  was  surrounded.  I 
knew  them  to  be  equal  to  any  emergency,  but  I  felt 
under  special  obligations  to  the  gallant  commander 
of  the  Eescue,  for  the  efficient  aid  he  rendered  me. 
With  the  kindest  consideration,  and  the  most  cheerful 
alacrity,  he  volunteered  to  perform  the  executive  duties 
during  the  winter,  and  relieve  me  from  every  thing 
that  might  tend  in  the  least  to  retard  my  recovery. 

"  During  the  remainder  of  December,  the  ice  re- 
mained quiet  immediately  around  us,  and  breaks  were 
all  strongly  cemented  by  new  ice.  In  our  neighbor- 
hood, however,  cracks  were  daily  visible.  Our  drift 
to  the  eastward  averaged  nearly  six  miles  per  day ;  so 
that  on  the  last  of  the  month  we  were  at  the  entrance 
of  the  Sound,  Gape  Osbom  bearing  north  from  us. 

"January,  1851. —  On  passing  out  of  the  Sound,  and 
opening  Baffin's  Bay,  to  the  north  was  seen  a  dark  hori- 
zon, indicating  much  op  en  water  in  that  direction.    On 


WINTER  IN  THE  ABOnO  OGBAH. 


m 


the  lltb,  a  crack  took  place  between  us-and  the  Bescne, 
passing  close  under  our  stem,  and  formine  a  lane  of 
water  eighty  feet  wide.    In  the  afternoon  the  floes  be- 

S;n  to  move,  the  lane  was  closed  up,  and  the  edees  of 
e  ice  coming  in  contact  with  so  much  pressure,  threat- 
ened the  demolition  of  the  narrow  space  which  sepa- 
rated«us  trom  the  line  of  fracture.  Fortunately,  the 
floes  aga^n  separated,  and  assumed  a  motion  by  which 
the  Be|cue  passed  from  our  stem  to  the  port  bow,  and 
increased  her  distance  from  us  709  yards,  is  here  ehe 
came  to  a  stand.  Our  stores  that  were  on  the  ice  were 
on  the  same  side  of  the  cracks  as  tiie  Kescue,  and  of 
coarse  were  carried  with  her.  The  following  day  the 
ice  remained  quiet,  but  soon  after  midnight,  on  the 
13tb,  agale  having  sprang  up  from  the  westward,  it 
once  more  got  into  violent  motion.  The  young  ice  in 
the  crack  near  our  stem  was  soon  broken  np,  the  edges 
of  the  thick  ice  came  in  contact,  and  fearfnl  pressures 
took  place,  forcing  up  a  line  of  hummocks  ^hich  ap- 
proacned  within  ten  feet  of  our  stem.  The  vessel 
trembled  and  complained  a  great  deal. 

"At  last  the  floe  broke  up  around  ub  into  many 
pieces,  and  became  detachea  from  the  sides  of  the 
vessel.  The  scene  of  frightM  commotion  lasted  until 
4  A.  M.  Every  moment  1  expected  the  vessel  would 
be  crashed  or  overwhelmed  by  the  massive  ice  forced 
up  far  above  our  bulwarks.  iThe  Bescue  being  further 
removed  on  the  other  side  of  the  crack  from  the  line 
of  crushing,  and  being  firmly  imbedded  in  heavy  ice, 
I  was  in  hopes  would  remain  imdisturbed.  This  was 
not  the  case;  for,  on  sending  to  her  as  soon  as  it  was 
light  enough  to  see,  the  floe  was  found  to'  be  broken 
away  entirely  np  to  her  bows,  and  thnre  formed  into 
each  high  hummocks  that  her  bowsprilfVas  broken  ofl^, 
together  with  her  head,  and  all  the  light  wood  work 
abou^it.  Had  the  action  of  the  ice  continued  much 
longer,  she  must  'have  been  destroyed.  We  had  the 
misfottune  to  find  sad  havoc  had  been  made  among 
the  stores  and  provisi«/ii<}  left  on  the  ice;  and  few  bar- 
rels were  recovered ;  but  a  large  portion  were  crushed 
and  hadMisappeared. 


i(>4 


PB00RES8  OP  AKOnO  DISCOVERY. 


^..  A 


J    t    ITH 


.  **  On  th^  morriing  of  the  14th  there  was  again  Bome 
motion  in  the  floes.  That  on  the  port  side  moved  off 
from  the  vessel  two  or  three  feet  and  there  became 
stationary.  This  lefc  the  vessel  entirely  detached 
from  the'ico  round  tlie  water  line,  and  it  was  expected 
she  would  once  more  resame  an  upright  position.  In 
tins,  however,  we  were  disappointed,  for  sue  remained 
with  her  stern  elevated,  and  a  considerable  lift  to  star- 
board, being  held  in  this  uncomfortable  position  by  the 
heavy  masses  which  had  been  forcoi  under  her  bottom 
She  retained  this  position  until  she  finally  broke  out 
in  the  spring.  "We  wore  now  fully  launched  into  Baf- 
fin's Bay,  and  our  line  of  dritt  be^an  to  be  more  south- 
erly, assuming  a  direction  nearly  parallel  with  the 
western  shore  of  the  Bay  at  a  distance  of  from  40  to 
'TO  miles  from  it. 
"  After  an  absence  of  87  days,  the  sun,  on  tlie  29th 


of  Jan 


rose  his  whole  diameter  above  the  south- 


ern horiibn,  and  remained  visible  more  than  an  hour. 
All  handd  gave  vent  to  delight  on  seeing  an  old  friend 
again,  in  three  hearty  cheers.  The  length  of  the  days 
now  went  on  increasing  rapidly,  but  no  warmth  was 
yet  experienced  from  the  sun's  rays ;  on  the  contrary 
the  cold  became  more  intense.  Mercury  became  con- 
gealed in  February,  also  in  March,  which  did  not  occur 
at  any  other  period  during  the  winter.  A  very  low 
temperature  was  invariably  accompanied  with  clear 
and  calm,  weather,  so  that  our  coldest  days  were  per- 
haps the  most  pleasant.  In  the  absence  of  wind,  we 
^  could  take  exercise  in  the  open  air  without  any  incon- 
veniehcid^from  the  cold.  But  with  a  strong  wind  blow 
ing,  it  was  aangerous  to  be  exposed  to  its  chilling  blasts 
for  any  lengl^of  time,  even  when  the  thermometer 
indicated  a  comparatively  moderate  degree  of  tem- 
perature. 

''The  ice  around  the  vessels  soon  became  cemented 
again  and  fixed,  and  no  other  rupture  was  experienced 
until  it  finally  broke  up  in  the  spring,  and  allowed  us 
to  escape.  Still  we  kept  driving  to  the  southward 
along  with  the  n  hole  mass.    Open  lanes  of  water  were 


w 


f 


1 


4 


viBible  at  I 

be  formed 

seals,  and 

men  were 

few  of  the 

their  exerl 

seen  prow 

winter;  o 

A  few  of 

wholesoini 

flesh  of  t1 

ceived  wil 

"As  the 

more  nnm 

by  the  nn 

the  medic 

pecially  U 

medical  o 

sion  to  e< 

crew,  and 

which  he 

mended, 

without  t 

February 

able  us  tc 

cue,  suffi 

injury  sh 

and.    It ' 

geon  aloi 

was  adjui 

shipping, 

sprit  wae 

we  had  1 

vessels  b 

"InM 

snow  wh 

became ' 

dissoluti* 

to  be  dis 

riodtob 


i 


YHNTEB  nr  m^  Jforib  ookav. 


406 


visible  at  all  times  from  aloft ;  lometimet  they  wimld 
be  formed  within  a  mile  or  twovftni.  Nam  halt, 
seals,  and  doyekys  were  seen  in  ffn.  Onr  sporti- 
inon  were  not  expert  enoneh  to  procure  any,  except  a 
few  of  the  latter;  although  they  were  indefatigable  in 
their  exertions  to  do  so.  Bears  would  frequently  be 
seen  prowling  about ;  only  two  were  killed  during  tha 
winter ;  others  were  wounded,  but  made  their  escape. 
A  few  of  us  thought  their  flesh  very  palatable  and 
wholesome ;  but  the  majority  utt&byjejected  it.  The 
flesh  of  the  seal,  when  it  could  oflpbtained,  was  re- 
ceived with  more  favor. 

^*  As  the  season  advanced,  the  cases  of  scuryy  became 
more  numerous,  yet  the^  were  all  kept  under  control 
by  the  unwearied  attention  and  skillful  treatment  of 
the  medical  officers.  Hy  thanks  are  due  to  them,  es- 
pecially to  Passed  Atfistant  Surgeon  Kane,  the  senior 
medical  officer  of  the  expedition.  I  often  had  occa- 
sion to  consult  him  concerning  the  hygiene  of  ike 
crew,  and  it  is  in  a  great  measure  owing  to  the  advice 
which  he  gave  and  the  expedients  which  he  recom- 
mended, tnat  the  eaf»edition  was  enabled  to  return 
without  the  loss  of  one  man.  By  the  latter  end  of 
February  the  ice  had  become  sufficiently  thick  to  en- 
able us  to  build  a  trench  around  the  stem  of  the  Bes- 
cue,  sufficiently  deep  to  ascertain  the  extent  of  the 
injury  she  had  received  in  the  gale  at  Griffith's  Isl- 
and. It  was  not  found  to  be  material :  the  upper  gud- 
geon alone  had  been  wrenched  from  the  stem  post.  It 
was  adjusted,  and  the  mdder  repaired  in  readin* 
shipping,  when  it  should  be  required.  A  ne 
sprit  was  also  made  for  her  out  of  the  few  spar< 
we  had  left,  and  every  thing  made  seaworthy  in 
vessels  before  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice. 

''In  May,  the  noon-day  began  to  take  effect  upon  the 
snow  which  covered  the  ice ;  the  surface  of  the  floes 
became  watery,  and  difficult  to  walk  over.  Still  the 
dissolution  was  so  slow  in  comparison  with  the  mass 
to  be  dissolved,  that  it  must  have  taken  it  a  long  pe- 
riod to  become  liberated  from  this  cause  alone.    Jd< 


ore 


'*. 


% 


406 


PBOOBIM  OF 


^I^JKTflO 


Disoovcirr. 


vai  expected  fron^onr  sontherljr  drift,  ^^hicb  Btfll  con- 

m  carry  us  into  a  nrilder  climnto 


ronton 
i4|0>oi 
Vtl 


tiniied,  and  mnc 

and  open  sea.  "W  the  19th  of  May,  the  land  ahont 
Cape  Bearle  yrns  made  out,  the  first  that  we  had  seen 
sinee  passing  Gape  Walter  Bathurst,  about  the  20th  of 
January.  A  few  days  later  we  were  off  Cape  Wnlsing- 
ham,  and  on  the  27th,  passed  out  of  the  Arctic  Zone. 

jH  On  the  Ist  of  April,  a  hole  was  cut  in  some  ico  that 
had  been  forming  6i|^ce  our  first  besetment  in  Septem- 
ber ;  it  was  fouqi4p  have  attained  the  thickness  of  7 
feet  2  inches,  ifluis  month,  (April,)  the  amelioration 
of  the  temperature  became  quite  sensible.  All  hands 
were  kept  at  work,  cutting  and  sawing  the  ice  around 
the  vessels,  in  order  to  allow  them  to  float  once  more. 
With  the  Rescue,  they  succeeded,  after  much  labor,  in 
attaining  this  object ;  but  around  the  stem  of  l^io  Ad- 
yance,  the  ice  was  so  thick  thatigr  13  feet  saw  was  too 
short  to  pass  through  it ;  her  bows  and  sides,  as  far  aft 
as  the  gangway,  wore  liberated.  After  making  somo 
alteration  in  the  Rescue  for  the  better  accommodation 
of  her  crew,  and  fires  being  lighted  on  board  of  her 
several  days  previous,  to  removSthe  ice  and  dampness, 
which  had  accumulated  during  the  winter,  both  omecrs 
and  crew  were  transferred  to  her  on  the  24th  of  April. 
The  stores  of  this  vessel,  which  had  been  taken  ont, 
were  restored,  the  housing  cloth  taken  off,  and  the  ves- 
sel made  in  every  respect  ready  for  sea.  There  was 
little  prospect,  however,  of  our  being  able  to  reach  the 
desired  element  very  soon.  The  nearest  water  was  a 
narrqv  lane  more  than  two  miles  distant.  To  cut 
throi^  the  ice  which  intervened,  would  have  been  next 
to  ^pbssible.  Beyond  this  lane,  fi*om  the  mast-head, 
nonng  but  intermediate  floes  could  be  seen.  It  was 
thought  best  to  wait  with  patience,  and  allow  nature  to 
work  for  us. 

"June  6th,  a  moderate  breeze  firom  S.  E.  "^th  pleasant 
weather — thermometer  up  to  40  at  noon,  and  altogether 
quite  warm  and  malting  day.  During  the  morning  a 
peculiar  cracking  sound  was  heard  on  the  floe.  I  was 
mcjined  to  impute  it  to  the  settling  of  the  snowdrifts  as 


'!« 


wnrnsB  nx  floe  arcito  ookak. 


4#7 


thoy  woru  actod  npon  bj  tho  smi,  bnt  in  tbo  ailornoon, 
about  5  o'clock,  tho  unzzio  wua  solvod  very  lucidly,  and 
to  tlio  oxceedinff  satisfaction  of  all  bands.  A  crack  in 
tbo  floo  took  pmce  between  iib  and  tlie  Kcscno,  and  in 
a  few  minntes  thereafter,  tho  whole  immenso  field  in 
which  we  bad  been  imbc<V1cd  for  so  many  months, 
was  rent  in  all  directions,  leaving  not  a  piece  of  100 
yards  in  diameter.  The  rupture  was  not  accompanied 
with  any  noise.  The  Bescue  was  entirelv  liberated, 
tho  Advance  onlv  partially.  The  ice  in  which  her  after 
part  was  imbedaed,  still  adhered  to  her  from  the  main 
chains  aft,  keeping  her  stem  elevated  in  its  unsightly 
position.  Tho  pack,  (as  it  may  now  be  called,)  became 
quite  loose,  and  but  for  our  pertinacious  friend  acting 
as  an  immense  drag  upon  us,  wo  might  have  made 
some  headway  in  any  desired  direction.  All  our  efforts 
were  no>V  turned  tojJMting  rid  of  it.  With  saws,  axes, 
and  crowbai-s,  the  ^ople  went  to  work  with  a  right 

food  will,  and  after  hard  labor  for  48  hours  succee^d. 
he  vessel  was  again  afloat,  and  she  righted.  The  joy 
of  all  hands  vented  itself  spontaneously  in  three  hearty 
cheers.  Tlie  aft;er  pai*t  of  the  false  keel  was  pone,  be- 
ing carried  away  by  the  ice.  The  loss  of  it,  however, 
I  was  glad  to  perceive,  did  not  materially  affect  the 
sailing  or  working  qualities  of  the  vessel.  The  rudders 
were  shipped,  ana  wo  were  once  more  ready  to  move, 
ao  efficient  as  on  the  day  wo  left  New  York. 

"Steering  to  the  S.  E.  and  working  slowly  through  the 
loose  but  heavy  pack,  on  tho  0th  we  u^rted  from  the 
Bcscue  in  a  dense  fog,  she  taking  a  dimrent  lead  from 
the  one  the  Advance  was  pursuing." 


A"^'  ■'^ivtjt'     ^^A«5'   iiv  '*  i^T'" 


m 


.«■:■ 


PSOGSESS  OF  AJtOflO  DI800TEBT. 


Ground  fob  Hope. 


u 


Mr.  Wm.  Penny,  of  Aberdeen,  states  in  a  letter  to 
the  Times,  that  Capt.  Martin,  who,  when  commanding 
the  whaler  Enterprise,  in  1845,  was  the  last  person  to 
communicate  with  Sir.  J.  Franklin,  has  just  informed 
him  that  the  Enterprise  was  alongside  the  Erebus,  in 
Melville  Baj,  and  Sir  John  Franklin  invited  Lira, 
(Capt.  Martm,)  to  dine  with  him,  which  the  latter  de 
clined  doing,  as  the  wind  was  fair  to  go  south.  Sit 
John,  while  conversing  with  Oapt.  Martin,  told  him 
that  he  had  five  years'  provisions,  which  he  could 
make  last  seven,  and  his  people  were  busily  engaged 
in  salting  down  birds,  of  which  they  had  several  casks 
full  already,  and  twelve  men  were  out  shooting  more. 
"To  see  such  determination  and  foresight,"  observes 
Mr.  Penny,  "  at  that  early  per^^  is  really  wonderful, 
and  must  give  ns  the  greate^Ropes."  Mr.  Penny 
says  that  Capt.  Martin  is  a  man  of  fortune,  and  of  the 
strictest  integrity. 

T^e  foUowmg  is  the  deposition  of  Capt.  Martin,  just 
received  in  the  London  Times,  of  Jan.  1,  1852,  con- 
taining the  facts  above  alluded  to : 

Kobert  Martin,  now  master  and  commander  of  the 
whaleship  Intrepid,  of  Peterhead,  solemnly  and  sin- 
cerely declares  that  on  the  22d  day  of  July,  1845,  when 
in  command  of  the  whale  ship  Enterprise,  of  Peter- 
head, in  lat.  75*^  10',  long.  66°  "W.,  calm  weather,  and 
towing,  the  Erebus  and  Terror  were  in  company.  These 
ships  were  alongside  the  Enterprise  for  about  fifteen 
minutes.  The  declarant  conversed  with  Sir  John 
Franklin,  and  Mr.  Beid,  hie  ice-master.  The  conver- 
sation lasted  all  the  time  the  ships  were  close.  That 
Sir  John,  in  answer  to  a  question  by  the  declarant  if 
he  had  a  good  supply  of  provisions,  and  how  long  he 
expected  them  to  last,  stated  th&t  he  had  provisions 
for  five  years,  and  if  it  were  necessary  he  could  "make 
them  spin  out  seven  years ;"  and  he  said  further,  that 
he  would  lose  no  opportunity  of  killing  birds,  and 
whatever  else  was  useful  that  came  in  the  way,  to  keep 


OBO0ln>  FOB  HOPE. 


409 


up  their  stock)  and  that  he  had  plenty  of  powder  and 
shot  for  the  purpose.  That  Sir  John  also  stated  that 
he  had  already  several  casks  of  birds  salted,  and  had 
then  two  shooting  parties  out  —  one  from  each  ship. 
The  birds  were  very  numerous ;  many  would  fall  at  a 
siugle  shot,  and  the  declarant  has  himself  killed  forty 
at  a  shot  with  white  pease.  That  the  birds  are  very 
as^reeable  food,  are  in  taste  and  size  somewhat  like 
young  pigeons,  and  are  called  by  the  sailors  "  rotges." 

That  on  the  26th  or  28th  of  said  month  of  July,  two 
parties  of  Sir  John's  officers,  who  had  been  out  shoot- 
ing, dined  with  the  declarant  on  board  the  Enterprise. 
There  was  a  boat  with  six  from  each  ship.  Their  con- 
versation was  to  the  same  effect  as  Sir  John's.  They 
spoke  of  expectii^  to  be  absent  four  or  five,  or  per- 
haps six  years.  Tnefte  officers  also  said  that  the  ships 
would  winter  wher<|g^y  could  find  a  convenient  place, 
and  in  spring  puswKi  as  far  as  possible,  and  so  on 
year  after  year,  as  the  determination  was  to  push  on 
as  far  as  practicable. 

That  on  the  following  day,  an  invitation  was  brought 
to  the  declarant,  verbally,  to  dine  with  Sir  John,  but 
the  wind  shifted,  and  the  Enterprise  having  cut  through 
*}ie  ice  about  a  mile  and  a  half,  the  declarant  was 
obliged  to  decline  the  invitation.  That  he  saw  the 
Erebus  and  Terror  for  two  days  longer;  they  were 
still  lying  at  an  iceberg,  and  the  Enterprise  was  mov- 
ing slowly  down  the  country.  ThfM;  so  numerous  were 
the  birds  mentioned,  and  so  £sivorable  fas  the  weather 
for  shooting  them,  that  a  very  large  number  must  have 
been  secured  during  the  time  the  declarant  was  in 
eight  of  the  two  ships.  The  Prince  of  Wales  whaler 
wuB  also  within  sight  during  the  most  of  the  time. 
Chat  from  the  state  of  the  wind  and  weather  for  a  pe- 
riod of  10  days,  during  part  of  which  the  declarant 
•vas  not  in  sight  of  the  two  ships,  the  best  opportunity 
^vas  afforded  for  securing  the  birds.  That  the  birds 
described  are  not  to  be  found  at  all  places  on  the  fish- 
ing ground  during  the  whaling  season,  but  are  met 
with  in  vast  numbers  every  season  on  certain  feeding 


I', 


410 


PJKOOBB88  OF  ABCflO  DISGOYEBY. 


banks  ana  places  for  brooding,  and  it  appeared  at  the 
time  by  the  declarant  to  be  a  most  fortunate  circttm- 
stance  that  the  Erebtks  and  Terror  had  fallen  in  witli 
BO  many  birds,  and  that  the  state  of  the  weather  was 
so  favorable  for  securing  large  numbers  of  them.  The 
declarant  has  himself  had  a  supply  of  the  same  de 
ficription  of  birds,  which  kept  fresn  and  good  during 
three  months,  at  Davis'  Strait,  and  the  last  were  as 
good  as  the  first  of  them. 

Which  declaration,  above  written,  is  now  made 
cpnscientiously,  believing  the  i^ame  to  be  true. 

EOBEBT  HasTIN. 

Declared,  December,  29th,  1861,  before 

R.  Grath,  Provqst  of  Peterhead. 


Ai   !>■ 


A:- 


vol  AGE  OF  tlflC  6TEA.MEK  ISABEL. 


411 


A.  Summer's  Search  foe  Sir  John  Franklin,  wtth  a 
Pass  into  ^he  Polar  Basin,  by  Commander  E.  A. 
Inglefield,  in  the  Screw  StejCmer  Isabel,  in  1852. 

The  profound  interest  which  the  heroism  and  mys- 
terious fate  of  Sir  Jolin  Franklin,  have  excited  in  the 
public  mind,  occasioned  other  expeditions  to  start  in 
pursuit  of  him^  both  from  England  and  the  United 
States,  the  details  of  whose  adventures  are  in  the 
highest  degree  entertaining.  On  the  12th  of  July, 
1852,  Commander  Inglefield  took  his  departure  in 
the  English  steamer  Isabel,  from  Fair  Island;  and 
sailed  forth  toward  the  frozen  realms  of  the  north,  to 
which  so  many  other  bold  adventurers  had  already^ 
been  attracted.  His  O'ew  consisted  of  seventeen  per- 
sons, including  two  i<^-masters,  a  mate,  surgeon,  en- 
gineer, stoker,  two  ^ipenters,  cook,  and  eight  able 
seamen,  who  had  beel^halers.  The  two  ice-masters, 
Messrs.  Abernethy  and  Manson,  were  already  well 
known  in  "  Arctic  Cirles,"  as  having  been  connected 
with  former  expeditions,  and  as  having  great  experi- 
ence in  the  perils  incident  to  adventurous  travel  in 
that  perilous  zone.  Tiie  vessel  was  provided  with 
fuel  and  provisions  for  several  years. 

On  the  30th  of  July  the  expedition  gained  their 
first  distant  glimpse  of  the  snowy  mountains  of  Green- 
land. On  the  same  day  the  first  icebergs  sailed  ma- 
jestically past  them.  Ere  midnight  the  Isabel  was 
completely  surrounded  by  those  massiv^.  monuments 
of  the  northern  seas.  Already  the  utmost  caution 
was  necessary  to  prevent  a  fatal  collision  between 
them  and  the  little  steamer  which  slowly  and  adroitly 
elbowed  her  way  through  their  rolling  masses.  In 
spite  of  the  utmost  prudence,  the  Isabel  occasionally 
struck^;  instantly  she  trembled  from  stem  to  stem, 
recoiled  for  a  moment,  but  then  again  recovered  and 
advanced  upon  her  way.  The  advantages  of  a  screw- 
steamer  for  the  purposes  of  navigating  polar  seas 
filled  with  floating  ice,  were  already  apparent  at  thia 


M 


W 


m 


PK0QRES8  OF  ARCTIC  DI30OVKBY. 


early  stage  of  the  expedition.  The  propelling'power 
being  placed  at  the  stern  of  the  vessel,  ana  not  at 
the  sides,  enabled  her  to  worm  her  waj  unresisted 
through  very  many  narrow  defiles,  which  a  steam- 
ship of  ordinary  structure,  or  even  a  sailing  vessel 
could  not  have  done. 

On  the  7th  of  August  the  expedition  reached  the 
neighborhood  of  Fiskernoes,  a  Danish  settlement: 
and  they  were  there  visited  by  some  Esquimaux  in 
their  canoes.  Guided  by  these  jpilots  they  entered 
the  harbor  on  which  their  village  is  built.  They  vis- 
ited the  Danish  governor,  M.  Lazzen,  and  were  kindly 
entertained  by  him.  A  few  goats  supplied  his  family 
with  milk,  and  a  very  small  garden  protected  from 
the  storms  of  that  climate  by  artificicial  means,  af- 
forded them  a  few  vegetable  during  the  summer 
months.  M.  Lazzen  furnish^Lthe  vessel  with  some 
salmon,  codfish,  and  milk.  'l^Presidence  of  the  gov- 
ernor in  this  inhospitable  region,  consisted  of  a  small 
house  two  stories  high,  built  in  an  antique  but  sub- 
stantial manner.  A  D.'inish  clergyman  visits  this  ob- 
scure and  remote  spot  once  every  two  weeks,  and 
preaches  to  the  governor  and  to  the  colony  of  rude 
Esquimaux  over  whom  he  rules. 

On  the  10th  of  August  the  Isabel  resumed  her 
^*ourney.  She  then  sailed  for  the  harbor  of  Lievely, 
m  which  the  expedition  obtained  a  few  supplies  of 
sugar,  soap,  and  plank,  which  they  needed ;  but  they 
failed  to  obtain  here  e^her  dogs  or  interpreters.  On 
the  15th,  tEfly  found  themselves  o  S  Upernavick,  a 
settlement  in  which  they  obtained  these  necessaries. 
This  Greenland  village  consists  of  twp  or  three 
wooden  houses  for  the  Danish  settlers,  and  a  few  mud 
huts  for  the  Esquimaux.  In  sailing  out  from  this 
harbor  the  steam-engine  suddenly  stopped,  and  nei- 
ther the  commander  nor  the  engineer  was  able  to 
discover  the  difficulty.  They  were  completely  puz- 
zled, until  at  length  it  was  ascertained  that  the  screw 
at  the  stern  had  caught  in  a  loose  cable  which  floated 


.aj^' 


YOTAGE  OF  THE  STEAincS  ISABEL. 


413 


iu  the  water,  which  had  become  wound  around  the 
screw  BO  tightly,  and  in  such  a  manner,  as  to  eventu 
ally  impede  its  revolutions  and  stop  the  engine. 

After  the  adjustment  of  this  singular  and  unusual 
difficulty,  the  vessel  continued  her  voyage.  On  the 
17th  of  August  she  reached  Buchan  Islands,  passing 
in  her  way  innumerable  icebergs  of  gigantic  size, 
which  reeled  and  tumbled  in  the  deep,  and  occasion- 
ally split  up  into  many  fragments,  widi  a  roar  more 
grand  and  deafening  than  mat  of  thunder.  On  this 
day  the  vessel  lost  her  main-boom ;  which  in  falling  on 
the  deck,  struck  the  standard  compass  and  damaged 
it.  In  a  short  time  the  injuries  to  both  were  re- 
paired, and  the  Isabel  held  on  her  hyperborean  way. 

Having  arrived  at  Wolstenholmo  Sound,  the  navi- 
gators examined  the  site  of  the  former  winter  quar- 
ters of  the  '^  Korth  ^^r,"  and  had  the  melancholy 
pleasure  of  inspecti^Ptlie  lonely  graves  where  the 
remains  of  several  of  her  crew  were  laid  to  repose. 
Captain  Inglefield  and  his  officers  and  men  went  on 
shore  with  pickaxes  and  shovels.  The  place  is  called 
North  Ornenak ;  and  one  Adam  Beek,  a  seamen  in 
one  of  the  former  Arctic  expeditions,  had  asserted 
that  here  Sir  John  Franklin  had  been  assailed  by  the 
savage  and  starving  natives;  that  here  he  and  his 
crew  had  been  massacred ;  and  that  here  in  large 
cairm  they  had  been  buried.  The  story  was  an  im- 
probable one ;  but  Captain  Inglefield  determined  to 
examine  the  spot  thoroughly,  and  test  the  truth  of 
the  report.  Several  large  cairns  were  inde<3d  here 
found,  composed  of  heavy  rough  stones.  They  were 
immediately  pulled  down  and  their  interiors  inspected. 
But  nothing  was  discovered  save  a  large  quantity  of 
tish  bones  and  the  bones  of  other  animals,  which 
6eem  to  have  been  deposited  there  for  some  future 
use.  In  the  village  itself,  composed  of  a  few  un- 
derground hoVels,  occupied  by  half  starved  Esqui- 
maux, were  found  a  quantity  of  seal  and  walrus  fleSti, 
intended  to  supply  the  wants  of  nature  during  th^ 


414 


PB0OBEB8  or  ABOnO  DIBOOfEBT. 


nine  long  months  of  winter,  which  these  wretched 
beings  are  compelled  each  year  to  endure. 

Captain  In^lefield  determined  to  continue  the 
thorough  exammation  of  the  shores  of  Wolstenholmo 
Sound.  He  did  so,  and  discovered  several  islands 
which  were  not  to  bo  found  on  any  chart.  These 
islands  he  respectively  termed  the  Three  §ister  Bees 
Manson  Isle,  and  Abornethy  Isle.  During  this  por- 
tion of  the  cruise,  the  voyageurs  had  not  encoun- 
tered as  yet  much  of  the  severe  extremes  of  northern 
cold.  It  was  still  mid-summer,  and  the  trim  steamer 
was  able  in  the  absence  of  compact  ice,  to  sail  rap- 
idly through  known  and  unknown  seas,  in  opposition 
both  to  tide  and  wind.  Oh  the  25th,  the  Isabel 
reached  the  Gary  Islands ;  and  from  this  point  began 
the  voyage  of  Captain  Ingleiield  into  untraveled 
waters,  and  into  regions  whicqdpd  not  been  expiored, 
at  least  in  a  northward  direcBon,  by  any  of  his  pre- 
decessors. At  this  point,  in  the  summer  months,  a 
few  wretched  Esquimaux  manage  to  support  exist- 
ence; and  Captain  Inglefield  carefully  examined 
their  huts  to  ascertain  whether  any  me^nento  of  the 
expedition  of  Sir  John  Franklin  might  exist  among 
them.  No  article  of  European  manufacture  was 
found,  except  a  knife-blade  stamped  B.Wilson,  set  in 
an  ivory  handle,  a  broken  tin  canister,  and  several 
small  pieces  of  steel,  curiously  fixed  in  a  piece  of  bone. 
A  piece  of  rope  was  also  obtained,  having  an  eye  in 
it ;  but  this  was  supposed  to  have  drifted  ashore  from 
some  whaling  vessel.  No  trace  of  the  lost  naviga- 
tors had  as  yet  been  seen  since  the  commencement 
of  this  expedition. 

^  Captain  Inglefield  resumed  his  voyage,  and  as  he 
rapidly  invaded  those  new  seas,  througn  the  tireless 
power  of  steam,  he  discovered  many  new  islands,  at 
that  [period  of  the  year  free  from  their  noionstrous  bur- 
dens of  ice,  to  which  he  gave  appropriate  .  ames. 
Oiie  he  called  Northumberland  Island,  anoilier  Her- 
bert Island,  and  a  third,  Milne  Island.    At  tliis  point 


•  (5. 


y(»rACMB  Of  THE  STBAMttB  ISikBKL. 


41ft 


a  strait,  to  irliich  he  applied  the  name  of  Hnrchison, 
opened  out  in  an  eastern  direction,  and  invited  tiiexn 
to  enter  on  its  exploration,  with  tempting  prospects 
of  discoveiy,  Bnt  as  Sir  John  Franklin's  instructions 
had  been  to  travel  northward  and  westward  from  this 
point,  if  he  ever  reached  ^t,  it  was  evidently  neegiBsa- 
rj  to  follow  that  designated  route,  if  the  intention  td 
seek  him  was  still  retained.  Accordingly  Captain  In- 
gleiield  was  compelled  to  relinquish  the  exploration 
of  this  summer  sea.  On  the  26th  of  August  the  Is- 
abel reached  Cape  Alexander,  and  still  boldly  steer- 
ing northward,  tno  gallant  craft  passed  the  confines 
of  the  Polar  Sea,  and  was  about  to  make  her  adven- 
turous dip  into  the  Polar  Basin.  The  soundings  at 
tliis  point  were  145  fathoms.  It  was  at  this  time  the 
hope  of  Captain  I.  that  from  this  point  lie  might  find 
his  way  to  Behring's^Strait,  and  might  discover  the 
missing  navigator  somewhere  upon  this  remote  lino 
of  traveL 

Even  in  this  distant  northern  latitude,  the  weather 
still  remained  fair  and  temperate.  The  splendors  of 
that  clime  in  mid-summer,  transcend  the  power  of 
language  to  depict.  The  sun,  shooting  his  unob* 
structea  rays  far  into  the  northern  hemisphere,  tinges 
the  boundless  fields  of  half  melted  snow  with  crimson 
hues;  and  a  brightness  and  brilliancy  fill  the  heav- 
ens, which  almost  remind  the  observer  of  the  boasted 
beauties  and  charms  of  an  Italian  sky.  Those  Polar 
solitudes  now  resounded  with  the  unaccustomed^ch- 
oes  of  the  steamship,  which  glic^od  rapidly  over  half 
frozen  wastes,  which  sailing  vessels  could  'tnly  have 
traversed  at  a  very  slow  and  tedious  rate 

Captain  Inglefield  was  now  exploring  what  is 
know^  as  Smith's  Sound,  the  upper  or  northern  con- 
tinuation of  Baffin's  Bay.  The  western  shore  of  this 
body  of  water,  which  forms  a  part  of  the  Polar  Ocean, 
was  composed  of  a  high  range  of  frozen  mountains. 
These  were  called  after  the  Prince  of  Wales.  The 
extreme  northern  point  of  these  mountains  received 


^le 


PROORE88  OF  ABOTIO  OISOOYSBT. '' 


the  naime  of  Victoria  Head,  in  hofio*  of  the  British 
queen.  Thus  also  on  the  eastern  shore  of  this  sea,  the 
most  northern  point  discovered  by  CaptainLhe  named 
after  the  Danish  monarch,  Fredenck  VU.  After 
steaming  several  days  longer  in  a  north-western  di- 
rectii^n,  an  observation  was  made  of  the  position  of 
the  Vessel,  when  it  was  found  that  she  had  reached 
78°  28'  21"  north  latitude.  From  this  it  appears  that 
Captain  Inglefield  has  the  credit,  according  to  his  own 
computation,  of  reaching  the  distance  of  140  miles 
further  north  than  had  been  attained  by  any  previ- 
ous navigator.  The  vessel  was  now  surrounded  by 
immense  floating  icebergs.  The  frozen  shores  of  the 
ocean  receded  far  away  to  the  east  and  to  the  wesi.  A 
furious  storm  of  wind  and  hail  drove  directly  in  the 
face  of  the  bold  navigators,  as  they  continueifl  their 
course  toward  the  polo.  No  trjiftes  of  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin had  yet  been  discovered.  To  further  persist  in 
the  course  in  which  they  were  then  sailing,  was  only 
calculated  to  hem  them  in  with  the  oceans  of  ice 
which  the  rapidly  approaching  wmter  would  congeal 
around  them ;  and  the  moment  had  arrived,  in  the 
progress  of  the  expedition,  when  it  became  necessary 
fo  determine  what  final  course  should  be  pursued. 
While  the  commander  and  his  officers  were"  deliber- 
ating on  the  most  suitable  decision  to  be  selected, 
the  vessel  was  suddenly  surrounded  with  perils  such 
as  she  had  not  encountered  since  the  commencement 
of  thfe  voyage.  A  vast  land-pack  of  ice  had  floated 
from  the  west,  unperceived  through  the  heavy  fo^; 
and  immediately  the  Isabel  became  involved  in  its 
angry,  turbulent,  and  dangerous  embrace.  The  swell 
lifted  the  ^ihip  far  into  the  pack ;  and  the  violence 
and  fury  of  tne  troubled  masses  were  indicated  by 
the  loud,  roar  of  the  waters  surging  on  the  vast  floe- 
^ieces  by  which  the  vessel  was  sun^ounded.  The 
friffhtful  chaos  of  rolling  masses,  tossing  the  vessel  to 
and  fro  like  a  feather  in  their  midst,  seemed  to  render 
^cape  &om  the  impending  peril  of  being  eithei 


\  I 


TOTAOK  OF  THB  BTKAMEB  ISABEL. 


41T 


ernshed  or  submergod,  almost  impossible.  Tlie  only 
possibillitj  of  rescue  consisted  in  threading  their  way 
amid  the  rolling  and  tossing  fragments,  by  the  aid  of 
the  steam  engine,  after  first  getting  the  head  of  the 
vessel  free  from  its  contact  with  the  ice.  As  the  res- 
sel  carefully  and  slowly  went  forward  amid  the  float- 
ing ice,  immense  masses  dropped  astern  one  after  an- 
other into  her  wake.  She  espaped  at  length  thVoush 
every  danger ;  though  the  edges  of  the  fan  of  the 
screw  were  brightened  from  frequent  abrasion  against 
the  ice. 

Captain  Inglefield  now  continued  to  sail  eastward. 
He^passed  by  and  observed  new  islands  which  were 
theu  unknown  and  nameless,  to  which  he  applied  ap- 
propriate epithets.  On  the  1st  of  September  the  sea 
had  become  so  completely  encumbered  with  the  float- 
ing ice  as  to  make  the  further  progress  of  the  vessel 
both  difficult  and  dangerous.  Captain  Inglefield  then 
determined  to  steer  for  the  purpose  of  meeting  the 
squadron  of  Sir  Edward  Belcher,  which  had  also  oeen 
sent  out  for  the  purpose  of  searching  those  seas  for 
Sir  John  Franklm  by  the  British  government ;  and 
which  would  winter  there  in  fTccordance  with  their 
inBtnictioitil&  Captain  Inglefield  was  induced  to  pur- 
sue this  course  in  order  that  he  might  carry  his  sur- 
plus provisions,  stores,  and  coals  to  that  squadron ; 
and  that  he  might  convey  to  them  the  latest  news  and 
iLrormation  from  England.  It  was  his  intention  then, 
unless  some  special  service  required  his  exertions,  to 
return  to  England  with  intelligence  from  the  squad- 
ron of  Sir  E.  Belcher,  and  the  prospects  of  success 
which  still  attended  their  labors  of  discovery.  That 
squadron  Captain  Inglefield  knew  was  then  stationed. 
atBeechey  Island,  and  thither  he  immediately  steered. 
So  severe  had  the  weather  already  become,  that  the 
heavy  seas  which  broke  over  the  Isabel  continually 
froze,  and  her  bows  became  one  mass  of  ice,  binding 
the  anchor  fast  to  her  side.  After  several  days  of 
rapid  sailfiig,  Beechey  Island  was  reached ;  but  the 


* 


.'If 


^8 


PBooBns  or  abotio  mioovsbt. 


m- 


Nortli  Star  alone  was  found  there.  The  rest  of  Sit 
£.  Belcher's  squadron  had  sailed,  about  three  weeks 
before,  up  Wellington  channel,  and  it  was  supposed 
that  he  had  steer^  thence  through  the  open  waters 
beyond  Parry  Strait. 

It  was  on  this  Island  that  Captain  Inlegfield  was 
shown  the  three  graves  of  some  oi  Sir  John  Franklin's 
crew,  to  which  reference  has  already  been  made  on 
page  876  of  this  volume.  Flungins  through  the 
snow  which  was  knee-deep,  he  reached,  under  the 
guidance  of  one  of  the  officers  of  the  North  Star,  those 
sad  and  lonely  resting  places  of  mortalitv.  He  found 
them  unchanged  from  what  they  had  been  when 
visited  by  Lieutenant  Bo  Haven ;  and  he  was  in- 
formed by  his  guide  that  a  polar  bear  of  monstrous 
size  was  frequently  seen  keeping  his  grim  an^  cheer- 
less vigils  over  the  dead,  and  sitting  on  tho  graves. 
Captain  In^leiield  picked  up  some  of  the  meat  canis- 
ters which  lay  scattered  on  tne  island,  and  some  relics 
of  canvas  and  wood  which  were  supposed  to  have  he- 
longed  to  the  missing  ships.  He  obtained  from  the 
commander  of  the  North  Star  all  the  information  ne- 
cessary in  reference  t8  the  conditio^:  and  prospects  of 
Sir  John  Belcher  and  Captain  Kellett,  bofllf  of  whom 
held  commands  in^hat  squadron.  They  had  as  yet 
discovered  no  trace  of  Sir  John  Franklin ;  but  it  was 
their  purpose  to  pass  the  winter  in  the  Polar  Seas,  for 
the  purpose  of  renewing  their  researches  in  the  en- 
suing spring. 

As  this  voyage  of  the  Isabel  was  only  a  summer 
cruise,  and  as  the  vessel  was  neither  adapted  nor  in- 
tended to  confront  the  overwhelming  rigors  of  the 
winter  season  in  the  Arctic  regions,  it  was  but  proper 
that,  as  the  season  was  now  rapidly  advancing,  Cap- 
tain Inglefield  should  resume  his  voyage  homeward, 
to  escape  the  greater  perils  which  delay  would  entail. 
Accoraingly,  on  the  10th  of  September  the  Isabel  com- 
menced to  sail  in  a  southern  direction.  On  the  12th 
she  reached  Mount  Possession.    On  the  14tf(  she  was 


TOTAOB  or  THB  ITEAMKB  UABKL 


fppuidte  Oa];>e  Bowen.  Oaptain  luglefield  landed 
liere  to  examine  the  traces  or  a  cairn,  which  was  said 
Mu  exist.  But  he  saw  nothing  save  the  large  and  deep 
footprints  of  a  great  Polar  bear,  and  those  of  the  smaU 
Axctic  fox. 

Here  the  further  progress  of  the  Isabel  alons  the 
coast  was  stopped  by  the  presence  of  vast  fields  of  ice. 
It  became  necessary  to  press  along  the  edge  of  the 
pack,  and  seek  for  an  opening  to  permit  her  to  ad- 
vance. 'Iliis  pack  seemed  to  have  been  collected 
here  by  the  irtimense  icebergs  which  had  run  aground 
on  the  Hecia  and  Griper  banks,  and  thence  drifted 
south  by  the  ooiitinual  current  which  existed  on  those 
western  shorei^.  The  pack  stretched  away,  as  far  as 
the  eye  could  le^^^h,  both  southward  and  northward. 
A  storm  of  snow  came  on,  such  as  one  sees  only  in 
Arctic  latitudes.  The  oea  also  became  exceedingly 
rough  and  boisteruud;  and  wave  after  wave  broke 
over  the  whole  length  i/f  the  vessel.  Each  plunge 
filled  the  rigging  and  Juuug.  the  spars  with  monstrous 
icicles ;  and  the  waves  iroza  as  they  flooded  the  deck, 
the  ropes,  and  the  sails ;  so  that  the  hands  of  the  sail- 
ors were  Irozen  fast  the  indtaat  they  tonched  either 
of  them,  im 

On  thellst  of  September  ixMr ^^eath^r  moderated, 
and  the  Isabel  boldly  dashed  ili^ough  the  cr^vicea 
and  channels  of  the  pack.  Pancake  ice  was  rapidly 
forming  around  them,  giving  the  mariners  warning 
that  they  must  soon  vacate  that  k»caiity,  or  else  be 
frozen  in,  beyond  the  power  of  deliverance,  for  th% 
winter.  Kapidly  the  Isabel  dashed  forward,  impelled, 
by  the  unwearied  power  of  her  engine.  By  noon  on 
the  23d,  she  had  cleared  the  pack,  had  traveled  a  hun- 
dred and  seventeen  miles  in  twenty-four  hours,  and 
found  herself  in  69°  north  latitude.  Here  Captain 
Inglefield  encountered  a  gale  of  the  itmost  fury, 
which  continued  during  five  days  incessantly.  The 
ocean  waves  now  attained  the  size  of  mountains,  and 
exceeded  in  violence  and  fury  even  those  which  lash 


420 


pBoesnt  OF  ▲Bono  Duoomtr. 


the  bold  promontory  of  Oape  Horn,  wbere  the  waien 
of  two  great  oceans  roll  together  in  hostile  rivalrj. 
Vast  wares  continually  flooded  the  decks  fore  and 
aft.  Torrents  of  water  drenched  almost  eyery  portion 
of  the  vessel,  carrying  the  seamen  with  it  into  the  lee 
scuppers.  The  driftmg  sleet  and  snow  drove  so  fierce* 
ly  into  the  eyes  of  the  sailors,  that  it  was  almost  im* 
possible  for  tnem  to  see,  or  to  execute  orders.  Nev- 
ertheless, the  gaJlatit  ship  sailed  manfully  through  it 
all,  and  safely  outrode  the  gale,  though  with  the  loss 
of  her  spare  spars,  and  the  total  ribboning  of  her 
sails. 

In  order  to  repair  this  damase  Captain  Inglefield 
was  compelled,  after  the  storm  lulled,  to  steer  for  the 
nearest  port  of  Holsteinburg,  in  order  to  make  repairs. 
This  port  he  reached  on  the  2d  of  October,  pnring 
the  week  which  the  captain  spent  here,  the  aiiniver- 
sary  of  the  birth-day  of  the  king  of  Denmark  occurred; 
which  gave  an  occasion  for  the  observation  of  the 
peculiarities  of  the  Esquimaux  tribes,  who  here  live 
as  the  remotest  subjects  of  that  monarch,  under  the 
superintendence  of  a  governor  sent  from  Copenhagen. 
An  entertainment  was  given  at  the  house  of  the  gov- 
ernor. Esquimaux  of  both  sexes  attenddl^  danced 
their  native  dance%  drank  their  brandy-punch  fur- 
nished both  by  the  governor  and  by  Captain  Ingle- 
field, and  became  elated  and  uproarious  in  the  ex- 
treme. The  governor's  wife  was  an  Esquimaux  wo- 
man ;  and  Captain  Inglefield  had  the  honor  of  exe- 
cuting with  her  the  intricate  mazes  of  an  Esquimaux 
quadrille,  to  the  monotonous  scraping  of  a  crij)pled 
nddle,  bound  around  and  held  together  with  divers 
strings  and  splinters. 

On  the  7tn  of  October  the  Isabel  again  put  to  sea, 
and  again  she  encountered  a  storm  of  imusual  vio- 
lence.  The  helmsman  was  very  nearly  Washed  over- 
board.    On  the  13th  the  g^e  moderated,  and  the 


TOTAOR   OF  TBI  Vt^AUIStt  ItikBCL. 


4SI 


Tossel  then  oontinned  her  way  across  the  Atlantic.'^ 
No  incident  worth  j  of  special  notice  occurred  during 
the  rest  of  the  homeward  vojaeo.  On  the  4th  of  No- 
vember the  Isabel  anchored  at  Stromness,  having  been 
absent  precisely  four  months  from  the  day  of  starting. 
And  although  this  expedition,  taking  place  as  it  did 
in  the  summer  months,  was  devoid  of  the  i|snal  ex- 
treme horrors  and  vicissitudes  which  attend  Arctic 
researches,  it  accomplished  resnlts  which  were  by  no 
means  of  secondary  importance.  Captain  Ingleneld 
carefully  examined  the  unknown  eastern  shore  of  the 
Polar  fiasin,  as  far  north  as  78°  35',  thro  wine  con- 
siderable light  upon  the  disputed  question,  whether' 
Baffin's  Bay  opens  into  the  Polar  JBasin.  He  alsa' 
explored  the  waters  of  the  shores  of  Smith  Sound,  in 
search  of  Sir  John  Franklin,  but  in  vain.  Jones 
Sonnd  was  then  examined,  with  the  same  result,  and 
he  ascertained  the  probable  fact  that  this  sound  is  a 
galf  having  no  outlet,  except  nerhaps  by  some  small 
frozen  strait  into  the  Polar  Sea.  Lancaster  Sound 
was  also  visited,  and  the  western  coast  of  Baffin's  Bay 
as  far  south  as  the  river  Clyde.  Throughout  a  coast 
of  six  hundred  continuous  miles,  many  alterations  and 
additions  Are  made  in  the  geography  of  those  coun- 
tries. And  altogether,  for  a  private  expedition  of 
no  very  great  expense,  executed  in  a  small  vessel, 
though  amply  provisioned  and  stored,  the  results  at- 
tained were  as  important  as  could  reasonably  have 
been  expected. 

Eighteen  months  in  the  Polab  Begions  in  seaboh  ov^ 
Sib  John  Fbanelin's  Expedition,  in  the  teabs 
1850 — 51,  BY  Lieutenant  Shebabd  Osbobn,  with 
the  Steah  Vessels  Pioneeb  and  Intbepid. 

In  Mav,  1850,  this  expedition  was  fitted  out  at' 
Woolwich,  for  the  purpose  of  continuing  the  search 
after  the  missing  mariners.     The  instructions  of  the 
British  Admirauty  to  the  commander  were,  that  he 

R 


428 


PSOGBESa  OF  ABCnO  DIBCO\  KSY. 


Bhould  examine  Barrow's  Straits  south-westerly  to 
Cape  "Walker,  westerly  toward  Melville  Island,  and 
north-westerly  up  Wellington  Channel. 

On  the  26th  of  May  the  expedition  approached  tha 
shores  of  Greenland,  and  came  within  view  of  Cape 
Farewell.  They  proceeded  rapidly  on  nntil  they 
reached  their  ftrst  place  of  stoppage,  the  Whale  Fish 
Isles.  A  day  was  spent  here  m  taking  in  provisions 
and  fowls.  From-  this  point  the  view  of  the  shores 
of  Greenland  at  a  distance  was  picturesque  in  the 
extreme.  Its  glaciers,  its  lofty  peaks,  and  its  frozen 
headlands  presented  every  variety  of  shape ;  while 
between  them  and  the  vessels,  the  sea  was  covered 
with  an  infinite  variety  of  tossing  icebergs  of  every 
possible  size  and  proportion,  exhibiting  the  richest 
emerald  hues,  and  glowing  with  the  deepest  azure 
tints.  The  awful  silence  of  the  scene  was  impr«s8ive 
in  the  highest  degree,  a  silence  which  would  often  be 
suddenly  broken  by  a  distant  roar  reverberating 
along  the  surface  of  the  deep,  and  among  the  frozen 
masses.  It  was  the  breaking  up  of  some  vast  ice- 
bergs, whose  fragments  would  roll  over  into  the  sea, 
plunge  beneath  its  surface,  and  cover  the  spot  of  its 
descent  with  foam  and  spray.  This  proo^  was  re- 
peated at  short  intervals,  in  every  direction  of  the 
compass  around  them,  and  as  far  as  their  eyes  could 
reach. 

The  29th  of  June  still  found  Captain  Osborn  cruising 
opposite  the  northern  extremity  of  Greenland.  He 
here  be^an  to  experience  the  dangers  that  accom- 
panied the  necessity  which  he  sometimes  felt  of  an- 
choring to  icebergs.  This  operation  is  frequently  in- 
dispensable in  Arctic  regions,  when  progress  in  the 
required  direction  is  for  a  time  impossible.  The  ice- 
bergs in  consequence  of  their  immense  size  are  often 
aground,  and  thus  seamen  may  anchor  fast  to  them 
in  two  hundred  fathoms  of  water,  without  any  more 
trouble  than  digging  a  hole  in  the  iceberg,  and  in- 
serting a  hook  into  it,  called  an  ice-anclior.    This  is 


^ 


LIEUTENANT  08B0BN  9  EXPEDITION. 


423 


attached  to  a  whale  line,  which  enables  the  ship  to 
ride  out  under  the  lee  of  this  natural  breakwater,  and 
often  thus  to  escape  both  the  violence  of  the  winds, 
and  the  rude  shocks  of  a  lee  pack. 

But  the  dangers  which  sometimes  accompany  this 
process  are  considerable.  Sometimes  the  very  first 
stroke  of  the  man  setting  the  ice-anchor,  causes  a  por- 
tion of  the  iceberg  to  break  off,  and  the  persons  em- 
ployed in  the  work  run  great  risk  of  being  crushed  by 
the  falling  masses.  Sometimes  pieces  of  ice  become 
detached  from  the  upper  portions  of  the  berg,  and 
falling  on  the  ships  below,  havetinjured  spars,  and 
crushed  sailors  to  death.  Occasionally  these  masses 
have  been  so  immense  as  even  to  sink  the  vessel. 

On  the  6th  of  July  Captain  Osborn  had  his  first 
experience  ofthe  real  perils  of  the  Arctic  world.  All 
hands  were  at  dinner  when  the  news  suddenly  came 
down  from  the  deck,  that  a  vast  body  of  ice  was  ap- 
proaching under  the  pressure  of  a  strong  southerly 
gale.  A  heavy  brown  vapor  preceded  it,  under 
whiCi.  the  ice  gleamed  fiercely,  and  the  floes  were  rap- 
idly pressing  together.  The  best  security  against 
danger  in  cases  of  this  kind,  is  the  preparation  of 
docks  in  cthe  body  of  the  ice,  which  are  cut  in  the 
portion  which  is  firm  and  solid.  Into  these  the  ships 
are  then  inserted,  and  they  are  thus  protected  from 
the  collisions  of  the  loose  fragments.  In  this  case 
one  hundred  persons  were  instantly  on  the  solid  ice^ 
their  triangles  were  rigged,  and  their  long  ice-saws 
were  at  work.  A  bundled  manly  voices  accompanied 
their  labor  with  the  jolly  sailor  sonffs  of  merry  old 
England.  The  ice  was  about  three  leet  in  thickness, 
and  the  saws  employed  were  ten  feet  in  length.  Very 
soon  the  vast  cavity  intended  to  receive  the  ships  began 
to  take  form  and  shape,  and  they  then  were  removed 
into  them.  The  relief  was  niuch  needed;  for  the 
pressure  of  the  pack  extended  itself  some  ten  miles 
to  the  north  of  tne  position  of  the  vessels ;  the  col- 
lisions between  the  noes  and  the  iceberg  became  pro* 


,4>' 


m 


124 


PB0QBRS8  OF  ABOTIO  DIBOOVBRY. 


digious ;  and  had  the  ships  been  between  them,  they 
would  inevitably  have  suffered  severely.  But  safely 
ensconced  in  their  docks,  the  expert  seamen  could 
gaze  with  pleasure  at  the  sublime  spectacle  presented 
lor  many  miles  on  either  side  of  them. 

In  spite  of  the  vigilance  of  Oa^t  Osborn,  his  ships 
became  entangled  on  the  20th  oi  July,  in  the  midst 
of  a  heavy  pack,  six  feet  in  thickness.  So  great  was 
the  pressure  that  every  plank  and  timber  was  crack- 
ing and  groaning.  The  vessels  wore  thrown  over  on 
their  sides,  and  lifted  up  bodily,  the  bulkheads  crack- 
ing, the  decks  arclting  from  the  strain,  and  even  the 
scupper-pieces  turning  out  from  their  mortices.  The 
ice  was  rapidly  piling  up  as  high  as  the  bulwarks, 
around  the  vessels.  Thero  seemed  to  be  no  possible 
remedy  against  the  destruction  of  the  ships.  The 
sailors  quickly  brought  their  bundles  of  clotlies  on 
deck,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  refuge  on  the  ice. 
At  this  moment  a  deep  dent  in  the  side  of  the  Pion- 
eer, and  the  breaking  of  twenty-one  of  her  timbers, 
indicated  her  great  danger.  But  fortunately,  at  the 
very  moment  when  it  was  thought  that  she  must  be 
crushed  to  pieces,  the  strain  of  the  lioe-edge  suddenly 
eased,  and  the  ship  was  saved  from  destru(^|on. 

From  the  20th  to  the  31st  of  July  the  squaciron  con- 
tinued to  pursue  their  route ;  yet  so  impenetrable  was 
the  ice,  that  but  seven  miles  was  made  during  the 
whole  of  that  interval,  in  the  right  direction  I  By 
the  13th  of  August  the  squadron liad  passed  through 
Mellville  Bay,  and  had  reached  Cape  York.  They 
were  still  a  considerable  distance  from  the  chief  point 
of  research.  Yet  here  they  were  detained  for  two 
days  in  chasing  up  the  groundless  fabrication  of  Ad- 
am Beek,  alluded  to  in  the  previous  article,  in  refer- 
ence to  the  destruction  of  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his 
crews  at  this  ^oint,  by  the  native  Esquimaux. 

On  the  15th  of  August  Oaptain  Osbom  struck  west- 
ward, and  entered  a  wida  sea  of  water  which  seemed 
unobstructed  by  the  ice.    The  ebores  of  this  portion 


..asr- 


LTUUnjNAMT  OSBOBM's  EXPEDITlQlN. 


425 


of  Baffin's  Bay,  which  is  termed  the  "West  Land,  ap- 
peared to  be  frco  from  snow,  and  to  be  even  compar- 
atively verdant  and  genial.  At  Button's  Point  the 
commander  landed,  and  was  able,  at  this  season  of 
the  summer,  to  kill  both  deer  and  salmon.  The  na- 
tives of  this  region  had  here  erected  numerous  un- 
roofed winter  houses,  of  the  rudest  structure;  and 
the  navigators  discovered  many  cairns,  standing  gen- 
erallv  in  pairs.  These  were  instantly  pulled  down, 
for  the  purpose  of  discovering  their  hioden  contents. 
Nothing  however  was  found  of  a  suspicious  or  sug- 
gestive nature.  These  cairns  seemed  to  be  nothing 
Dut  marks  erected  by  the  Esquimaux,  to  enable  them 
to  discover,  on  the  return  of  winter,  the  places  where 
they  had  stored  their  sea-blubber  cctcM,  A  ring  of 
stones  several  feet  high  were  all  the  indications  of 
these  Esquimaux  huts  which  appeared  above  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground. 

It  was  on  the  22d  of  August  that  this  expedition 
entered  Lancaster  Sound.  This  is  the  great  gate-way 
to  those  Arctic  waters,  around  which  so  many  thrill- 
ing associations  cluster  of  maritime  adventure,  suffer- 
ing, and  discovery.  It  was  lirst  explored  by  the  bold 
Baffin,  two  hundred  years  ago,  and  was  named  by 
him  after  the  duke. of  Lancaster.  Baffin  termed  it  a 
sound.  Sir  John  lloss,  forty  years  since,  discovered 
that  it  was  a  bay ;  and  Parry,  who  has  not  unfitly 
been  termed  the  prince  of  Arctic  navigators,  until 
the  vastly  superior  abilities  and  services  of  the  im- 
mortal Kane  justly  deprived  him  of  that  honorable 
eminence,  explored  this  bay  throughout  the  extent  of 
600  miles  toward  Behring's  Straits.  j. 

i  It  was  to  complete  the  exploration  of  the  remain- 
mg  600  miles  of  this  unknown  region,  that  the  expe- 
dition of  Sir  John  Franklin  and  his  140  gallant  asso- 
ciates had  been  devoted.  Hence  in  pursuing  this 
line  of  travel  and  adventure,  Lieutenant  Osborn 
justly  supposed  that  he  was  following  the  most  prob- 
able and  most  certain  course  to  ascertain  the  fate  of 


420 


1PB0GBBS8  OF  ABOTIO  DISOOVERT. 


that  lost  and  unfortunate  expedition.    He  had  al- 
ready  discovered  one  important  fact  in  reference  to 
the  phenomena  of  the  Arctic  regions ;  or  if  he  had 
not  absolutely  discovered  it,  he  ascertained  its  cer- 
tainty.   This  was  that  the  iceberg,  the  most  wonder- 
ful peculiarity  of  those  climes,  is  the  creation  of  the 
glacier.    It  had  formally  been  supposed,  even  by  the 
most  learned,  that  the  iceberg  was  the  accumulation 
of  the  ice  and  snow'  which  the  lapse  of  ages  had  pro- 
duced ;  that  a  vast  circle  of  ice  many  miles  in  height 
and  depth,  surrounded  the  pole  like  an  eternal  belt; 
that  these  huge  cupolas  of  ice  towered  far  up  into 
the  cheerless  neavens  of  the  north  ;  transcendmg  in 
size  and  altitude  the  utmost  creations  of  human  arch- 
itecture ;   and  that  these  stupendous  icebergs  were 
merely  fragments  which  had  become  detache(L  proh- 
ably  by  their  own  weight,  from  the  parent  mads,  and 
had  then  floated  away  into  more  southern  seas.    This 
fanciful  conception  has  now  been  exploded ;  and  it 
is  proved  that  the  iceberg  is  only  known  to  exist 
where  there  is  land  of  a  nature  adapted  to  form  the 
glacier.    Accordingly,  Captain  Osborn  reasoned  that 
where  icebergs  burdened  the  ocean,  glacier  lands 
could  not  be  far  distant ;  and  he  directed  the  move- 
ments of  his  exploring  squadron  accordingly.    It  was 
by  following  this  principle  that  Sir  James  Boss  dis- 
covered the  circumpolar  continent  of  Queen  Yicto- 
ria's  Land,  in  the  Southern  or  Antarctic  hemisphere. 
On  the  26th  of  August  the  ships  entered  Eegent's 
Inlet.    The  nights  were  only  two  hours  in  duration. 
Kext  day  a  pack  of  ice  was  discovered  some  10  miles 
to  the  eastward.    They  instantly  sailed  westward, 
giving  the  intruders  very  wide  sea-room.    They  soon 
reached  Beechey's  Island,  on  which  the  three  graves 
of  Sir  John  Franklin's  seamen  were  to  be  found,  and 
other  evidences  which  showed  that  he  had  sojourned 
there  during  1846-4:(),  the  first  winter  of  their  ab- 
sence.   This  circumstance  confuted  the  opinions  of 
those  who  held  that  Sir  John  Franklin  had  perished 


in  the  de 
and  prov 
mote  poi 
Beechey'i 
ful  trace 
of  a  gar( 
borders  < 
emones, 
nial  dim 
Bome  trai 
garden  tl 

ered.     1 

embanki 

been  stu( 

enclosur 

some  wo 

hoase  ha 

preserve 

which  hi 

Whaled 

a  pair  oi 

to  dry  b 

small  st( 

being  s' 

there,  hi 

ever  sin 


tail 

of  Sir  J 

eye,  an 

These  g 

gnch  as 

departe 

wnethe 

girded 

of  the 

They  a 

quiet  i 

where 

the  hu: 


LIEUTENANT  OSBOSN's  EXPEDITION. 


427 


in  the  depths  of  Baffin's  Bay  on  his  ontward  voyage ; 
and  proved  that  he  had  advanced  safely  to  a  very  re- 
mote point  in  Arctic  travel  and  discovery.  On 
Beechey's  Island  Captain  Osborn  saw  another  mourn- 
ful trace  of  Sir  John  Franklin.  It  was  the  remnant 
of  a  garden,  with  a  neatly  shaped  oval  outline,  the 
borders  carefully  covered  with  moss,  lichen,  and  an- 
emones, which  he  had  transplanted  from  a  more  ge- 
nial clime ;  and  these  even  yet  continued  to  show 
some  traces  of  vitality.  At  some  distance  from  this 
garden  the  foundations  of  a  store-house  were  discov- 
ered. These  consisted  of  an  interior  and  exterior 
embankment,  into  which  oak  and  elm  scantling  had 
been  stuck,  as  supports  to  the  roofing.  "Within  the 
enclosure  some  empty  coal-sacks  were  found,  and 
some  wood  shavings.  It  is  probable  that  this  store- 
house had  been  constructed  by  Sir  John  Franklin  to 
preserve  a  portion  of  the  abundant  provisions  with 
which  his  decks  had  been  encumbered  when  he  left 
Whale  Fish  Islands.  Captain  Osborn  also  discovered 
a  pair  of  Cashmere  gloves  which  had  been  laid  out 
to  dry  by  one  of  the  lost  crews  ;  on  each  of  which  a 
small  stone  had  been  placed  to  prevent  them  from 
being  swept  away  by  the  wind.  They  had  rested 
there,  having  been  probably  forgotten  by  their  owner, 
ever  since  1846 1 

Again  on  this  occasion  were  the  three  lonely  graves 
of  S;r  John  Franklin's  seamen  scanned  by  a  sailor's 
eye,  and  wept  over  by  those  gallant  adventurers. 
These  graves  are  simple  and  neat  in  their  appearance, 
such  as  British  sailors  erect  over  the  bodies  of  their 
departed  messmates,  in  every  (quarter  of  the  globe, 
whether  in  the  frozen  zones  of  the  north,  the  coral- 
girded  isles  of  the  south,  the  verdant  and  spicy  vales 
of  the  east,  or  the  gold-gifted  clinaes  of  the  west. 
They  are  graves  which  remind  the  observer  of  8om9 
quiet  church-yard  in  England  or  in  our  own  land, 
where  the  departed  sleep  beneath  the  very  eaves  of 
the  humble  sanctuary,  suryp^nded  by  the  gree«  tarft 


% 


423 


FBOGBESS  OF  ABOTIO  DISOOTEBT. 


the  waving  grass,  and  the  blooming  rose,  with  which 
the  hand  of  affection,  or  the  undisturbed  fraitfulness 
of  nature  has  surrounded  them.  One  grave  of  the 
three  is  especially  suggestive  of  mournful  thoughts. 
It  is  that  of  "  J.  Hartnell,  B.  A.,  of  the  ship  Erebus; 
died  January  4th,  1846.  Aged  25  years."  Here 
was  a  youth  who  had  been  reared  amid  the  classic 
shades  and  the  ennobling  associations  of  one  of  En- 
gland's great  universities — either  a  Cantab  or  an  Ox- 
onian— and  strange  to  say,  he  was  destined  to  lay  his 
form  to  take  its  long  last  sleep  in  the  lonely  and  cheer- 
less solitude  of  that  frv>zen  zone ;  and  that,  too,  in  the 
prime  of  his  years,  and  far  distant  from  all  that  was 
connected  with  the  brilliant  hopes  of  his  youthful 
days! 

When  about  to  leave  Beechey  Island,  Capt^^in  Os- 
bo-:n  found  it  difficult  to  determine  what  course 
should  be  taken.  It  was  evident  that  Sir  John  Frank- 
lin had  selected  one  of  three  routes,  in  1846.  The 
first  was  south-west  by  Cape  Walker;  the  second, 
north-west  by  Wellington  Channel ;  the  third,  west 
by  Melville  Island.  Vague  reports  were  current 
among  the  crews,  that  some  of  Captain  Penny's  peo 
pie  had  seen  sledge-marks  on  the  eastern  shores  of 
Erebus  and  Terror  Bay.  Captain  Osborn  determined 
in  person,  first  to  explore  Beechey  Island,  in  that  di- 
rection. He  landed  on  the  north  shore  of  Union 
Bay,  at  the  base  of  the  cliffs  of  Cape  SJencer,  and 
soon  discovered  a  deep  sledge-mark  which  had  been 
cut  through  the  edge  of  one  of  the  ancient  natural 
terraces  on  the  beach.  It  was  in  a  line  between  the 
cairn  of  meat  cans  which  Franklin  had  erected  on 
the  northern  spur  of  Beechey  Island,  to  a  valley  be- 
tween the  Capes  Ennes  and  JBowden.  From  its  ap- 
pearance, it  had  been  evidently  an  outward-bound 
sledge,  and  its  depth  denoted  that  it  was  heavily  la- 
deiv  It  was  an  additional  evidence  of  the  former 
presence  of  Franklin  on  that  island.  Upon  further 
examination^  various  other  sledge-marka  were  dia- 


LIEUTENANT  OSBOBN'b  EZPEOmoir. 


429 


covered  on  the  island.  At  one  spot  they  were  vwy 
numerous,  and  proved  that  there  a  rendezvous  had  been 
appointed  for  the  purpose  of  landing  some  of  the 
contents  of  the  ships.  From  this  point  some  of  the 
sledge  marks  ran  northward  into  a  gorge  through  the 
hills ;  others  were  directed  toward  CaswelPs  Tower,  a 
singular  mass  of  limestone  rock,  on  the  shore  of  Ead- 
stock  Bay,  which  served  as  a  useful  landmark  to  all 
vessels  approaching  either  from  the  east  or  the  west. 

Captain  Osbom  here  divided  his  party,  and  each 
followed  the  sledge-marks  in  an  opposite  direction. 
He  discovered  the  site  of  a  circular  tent,  which  had 
evidently  been  constructed  and  used  by  a  shooting 
party  from  the  Erebus  or  Terror.  The  stones  which 
had  been  used  to  confine  the  canvas  to  its  place,  lav 
around.  Several  large  stones  well  blackened  witn 
smoke,  indicated  where  the  fire-place  had  been ;  and 
porter-bottles,  meat-cans,  pieces  of  paper,  and  feath- 
ers, were  strewed  about.  Yet  no  written  line  or 
mark  was  detected,  to  throw  any  light  on  the  great 
mystery  which  occupied  their  minds.  After  seven 
hours  of  hard  walking.  Captain  Osborn  and  his  men 
returned  to  the  ships.  Such  were  all  the  traces 
which  the  utmost  industry  and  scrutiny  could  dis- 
cover of  Sir  John  Franklin,  in  this  last  known  spot 
of  his  habitation.  From  the  Ist  to  the  4th  of  Sep- 
tember the  ships  lay  waiting  for  an  opening  in  the 
iixed  ice,  to  enable  them  to  resume  their  voyage.  At 
length  on  the  5th,  the  appearance  of  the  ice  and  the 
direction  of  the  wind  being  favorable.  Captain  Os- 
born immediately  gave  orders  to  proceed  across  Wel- 
lington Channel  toward  Barlow  Inlet. 

Before  this  course  had  been  pursued  for  any  dis- 
tance, the  channel  became  blocked  up  with  a  vast 
field  of  floating  ice.  A  northerly  gale  began  to  blow 
furiously  over  its  surface  ;  and  the  ships  of  the  squad- 
ron were  swept  along  with  the  ice,  in  whose  embrace 
they  were,  out  of  the  channel  toward  Leopold  Island. 
The  a'iuadron  drifted  at  the  rate  of  a  mile  per  hour, 

27 


-^?f  ■ 


"V' 


A80 


FBOGBBBB  OV  ABOTIO  DnOOTEBT. 


toward  the  south-east.  Suddenly  an  opening  in  the 
pack  occnrsed,  and  the  steam-engine  was  instantly 
Drought  into  requisition,  to  enable  the  seamen  to  ex- 
tricate themselves.  Soon  they  reached  again  the 
open  jg^ater ;  and  found  themselves  near  the  squadron 
of  Captain  Penny,  and  the  American  vessels,  com. 
manded  by  De  Haven.  These  were  then  making 
sail  under  a  fall  press  of  canvas  for  Cape  Hotham. 

When  in  this  position  on  the  llth  of  September, 
1860,  the  Arctic  winter  descended  on  the  adventur- 
ers. The  heavens  becamf  overclouded  with  black- 
ness, and  the  atmosphere  filled  with  hail,  snow,  and 
sleet.  A  heavy  sea  began  to  roll,  and  the  loose  frag- 
ments of  the  rapidly  congealing  ice  again  to  close 
around  them.  A  snug  harbor  was  happily  discov- 
ered for  the  winter,  between  Capes  Hotham  and, Mar- 
tvr,  on  the  south  side  of  Comwallis  Island.  Here 
the  Pioneer  and  Intrepid  were  taken  and  secured. 
Several  parties  were  sent  out  to  carry  provisions  and 
establish  depots  on  the  intended  routes  of  the  differ- 
ent expeditions  which  would  explore  this  region  in 
the  spring  of  1851.  Lieutenant  McClintock  carried 
out  a  depot  toward  Melville  Island,  and  Lieutenant 
Aldrich,  taking  another  toward  Lowther  Island. 
Lieutenant  Mecham  was  also  sent  to  examine  Com- 
wallis Island,  between  Assistance  Harbor  and  Cape 
Martvr,  for  traces  of  the  progress  of  Sir  John 
Franklin. 

Captain  Osborn  determined  to  embraee  this  op- 
portunity to  connect  the  search  from  the  spot  where 
LieiUenant  Mecham  left  the  coast,  to  the  point  at 
which  Lieutenant  McClintock  again  took  it  up,  thus 
completing  the  survey  of  this  wht»le  region,  through 
which  it  was  very  naturally  inferred  that  Sir  John 
Franklm  had  passed.  He  started  on  the  10th  of  Oc* 
tober,  provided  with  five  day's  provisions.  » The  party 
consisted  of  six  persons.  The  thermometex  was  six 
degrees  above  zero,  and  accordingly  they  did  not 
Butter  from  the  severity  of  the  \veathQr.    After  a 


^ 


\     ^ 


/ 


oifit  .dfc: 


LQEDTENAMT  OSBOBm's  EXF^DIHON. 


481 


inarch  of  three  honrs  thej  came  to  Gape  Martyr. 
Striking  inward  on  Oomwallis  Island,  Captain  Os- 
born  came  suddenly  in  view  of  a  structfire  which  at 
onco  excited  the  utmodt  interest,  with  the  hope  that 
it  might  be  some  imknowp  .monument  of  the  lost 
navigators. '  It  was  a  rouna,  conical-shaped  building, 
twenty  feet  in  circumference  at  the  base.  The  apex 
had  fallen  in,  but  the  height  of  what  remained  was 
five  feet  six  inches.  It  was  well  built,  and  those  who 
had  reared  it  seemed  to  have  well  understood  the 
strength  of  the  arched  roof,  to  resist  the  weight  of  the. 
immense  amount  of  snow  which  falls  in  those  regions. 
Much  skill  was  exhibited  in  the  arrangement  of  the 
slates  of  limestone  with  which  the  building  was  con- 
structed. The  stones  of  the  apex  which  had  fallen 
within  the  walls  were  quickly  removed,  but  they  dis- 
covered nothing  which  could  enlighten  them  as  to 
the  origin  of  the  structure.  Yet  it  was  evident  from 
the  thick  moss  which  adhered  to  the  walls,  that  it 
was  not  of  recent  origin,  and  that  in  fact  it  must 
have  been  built  many  years  before  the  date  of  Sir 
John  Franklin's  voyage.  The  position  of  this  mys- 
terious monument  was  lonely  in  the  extreme.  It 
seemed  to  be  a  solitary  landmark  in  that  polar  world, 
of  the  former  and  transient  abode  of  some  unknown 
visitant ;  and  it  bore  clear  evidence  that  it  was  not 
the  product  of  the  labor  of  the  rude  Esquimaux,  who 
sometimes  in  their  summer  wanderings  reached  even 
these  remote  latitudes.  ^N^othing  more  of  interest 
was  discovered  on  CornwaUis  Island;  and  Captain 
Osborn  returned  to  his  ships. 

On  the  17th  of  October  the  commander  of  the 
ships  which  composed  this  squadron,  determined  that 
as  soon  as  they  could  commence  operations  in  the  en- 
suing spring,  Captain  Fenny  was  to  continue  the  ex- 
ploration of  Wellington  Channel,  while  Captain  Os- 
Dorn  was  to  continue  his  researches  toward  Melville 
Island,  and  from  Cape  Walker  toward  the  south-west 
With  the  settlement  of  this  arrangement,  a^the  la> 


^^3 


pmooBBss  OF  ABono  nuoovnrr. 


Hon  of  the  squadron  for  the  year  1850  closed,  as  the 
Gtmost  rigors  of  a  polar  winter  were  now  upon  them. 
The  upper  decks  were  then  eovered  in.  The  stoves 
and  warming  apparatus  were  set  to  work.  The  boats 
were  secured  on  the  ice.  All  the  lumber  was  re- 
moved from  the  upper  decks.  The  masts  and  yards 
were  made  as  snug  as  possible ;  and  rows  of  posts 
fwere  placed  between  the  ships,  to  designate  the  way 
amid  the  darkness  and  storms  of  winter.  Holes  were 
cut  through  the  ice  in  order  to  obtain  a  ready  supply 
.  of  water  in  case  of  fire ;  and  arrangements  were  made 
to  ensure  the  cleanliness  of  the  sliips  and  the  crews. 
On  the  8th  of  November  several  officers  ascended  the 
heights  of  Griffith's  Island,  and  at  noon  caught  the 
last  glimpse  of  the  sun,  which  they  were  destined 
to  see,  for  some  months ;  though  it  was  then  If  miles 
below  the  horizon,  and  the  rays  which  they  beheld 
were  those  only  of  refraction.  The  precise  poiition  of 
the  vessels  was  74^°  of  north  latitude. 

Though  the  sun  had  ceased  to  visit  those  Arctic 
heavens,  it  must  uot  be  supposed  that  the  bold  naviga- 
tors were  in  darkness.  The  southern  horizon  was  il- 
lumed each  day  during  several  hours  at  noon,  by  a 
deep  and  rosy  red  light,  mixed  with  pihk  and  bine. 
Toward  the  north  the  prevalent  appearance  of  the 
heavens  was  a  cold,  bluish-black.  During  the  rest  of 
the  twenty-four  hours,  a  gray  twilight  pre  vailed  around 
them,  except  when  the  moon  was  full.  At  that  pe- 
riod a  subdued  splendor  was  cast  over  the  frozen  face 
of  nature,  which  finds  no  parallel  in  the  natural  phe- 
nomena of  other  and  more  favored  climes.  The  love- 
liness of  an  Arctic  moonlight  none  can  know,  save 
those  who  themselves  have  seen  it. 

Thus  shut  out  from  all  the  world,  the  adventurers 
endeavored  to  wear  away  the  monotonous  months  of 
winter.  The  festivals  of  Christmas  and  New  Yeai 
were  observed  with  unusual  glee  and  festivity,  with 
such  means  as  w^re  within  their  reach.  Sometimes 
•  the  weather  was  too  severe  to  permit  any  communi- 


LoxmaAjn  ooosn's  bzvkditxon. 


488 


cation  between  the  vessels.  Dnrinff  a  portion  of  the 
time,  the  snow  was  drifted  to  such  immense  heights 
around  the  ships,  that  it.  excluded  all  yiew  of  the  sur^ 
rounding  wastes.  The  vessels  onlj  three  hundred 
yards  distant  from  each  other,  were  often  invisible, 
f^requently  as  the  fhrions  storms  of  the  north  swept 
over  the  sorronndinff  ice  for  many  miles,  the  floor  vi- 
brated and  trembled  with  the  violence  of  the  shock, 
and  communicated  this  singular  motion  to  the  vessels. 
The  aurora  borealis  alone  disappointed  those  who 
were  connected  with  this  expedition.  It  was  deficient 
ip  brilliancy  of  color.  It  was  also  inferior  in  extent 
to  what  they  anticipated.  The  series  of  concentric 
Mini-circles  of  liffht  were  subdued  by  dark  spaces 
between  them,  which  diminished  its  luster  and  gen- 
eral splendor.  The  snow  fell  almost  incessantly. 
When  heavy  ^es  blew  the  vessels  were  nearly 
smothered ;  and  vast  drifts  15  feet  thick  above  the 
decks,  had  to  be  removed  by  the  continual  labors  of 
the  seamen. 

Amid  .  uch  scenes  as  these,  the  long  winter  slowly 
passed  away.  Early  in  March  the  crews  began  to 
stir.  On  the  11th  of  that  month  the  thermometer 
was  41°  below  zero;  and  yet  this  temperature  was 
not  considered  as  too  severe  for  active  operations. 
On  the  4th  of  April,  1851,  preparations  were  made 
to  travel  on  sledges^or  the  purpose  of  pursuing  the 
inland  searches.  Captain  Omraaney  was  directed  to 
cross  Barrow's  Strait  and  Cape  Walker.  Lieutenant 
Aldrich  was  sent  with  two  sledges  and  14  men  toward 
the  unknown  channel  of  Byam-Martin  Island.  Lieu- 
tenant McCormick  was  dispatched  to  Melville  Island, 
to  prosecute  his  researches  as  far  as  Winter  Harbor, 
with  two  sledges  and  13  men.  Other  officers  were 
senrin  other  directions ;  mtUcing  in  all  fifteen  sledges, 
manned  by  105  men,  who  were  thiis  distributed  in 
various  directions,  in  order  to  obtain  information  and 
indications  of  the  career  and  fate  of  the  squadron  of 
Sir  John  Franklin. 


,-'*rf.^~!'^..-: 


484 


ntoeami  of  ▲botio  i>isootsbt. 


M«> 


It  was  the  12th  of  A]xril  when  these  expedition! 
started  forth  from  the  ships.  Our  space  forbids  ui 
to  follow  all  their  adventures,  which  were  exciting  and 
perilous  in  the  extreme,  over  vast  tracts  of  snow  and 
ice,  of  the  most  monstrous  and  irregular  shapeB. 
The  whole  coast  of  Gape  Walker's  I^tnd  was  Bur- 
yeyed.  Hany  of  the  seamen  became  snow-blind,  and 
many  had  frozen  feet.  Thej  beheld  yast  tracts  of 
snow-covered  land  hugged  by  the  icy  seas,  over  which 
a  silence  and  solitu^  sullenly  brooded,  not  unlike 
that  of  a  primitive  chaos.  Most  of  the  sledge  parties 
accomplished  ioumeys  of  500  miles,  in  various  direc- 
tions, auring  the  fifty  da^s  the  expedition  lasted.  Af  - 
ter  tue  lapse  of  this  period,  or  nearly  so,  all  the  pa^ 
ties  returned  to  the  ships.  Some  had  searched  the 
whole  western  coast  of  Bathurst  Island.  Som^a  had 
been  to  Winter  Harbor,  Bushman  Gove,  and  Cape 
Dundas.  Others  had  explored  the  whole  eastern 
coast  of  Mellville  Island.  In  eighty  days  the  compa* 
'Uy  under  Lieutenant  McClintock  liad  traveled  800 
miles,  dragging  their  sledses  containing  their  proyis- 
ions  after  them.  He  and  nis  men  had  performed  the 
greatest  labor  of  any  of  their  associates.  Yet  no- 
where, amid  all  these  various  researches,  in  every 
possible  and  available  direction,  had  the  least  trace 
been  detected  of  Sir  John  Franklin,  no  tradition  of 
his  presence,  no  monument  or  gy^dence  of  his  fate ! 

On  the  14tb  of  August,  185x|the  vessels  steered 
for  Jones'  Sound,  which  they  entered  on  the  evening 
of  the  15th.  This  sound  was  discovered  to  be  the 
narrowest  about  the  entrance.  The  scenery  of  the 
shores  is  magnificent.  Ten  miles  inland  a  huge 
dome  of  pure  white  snow  ascended  to  the  height  of 
4,000  feet,  presenting  one  of  the  most  singular  m[)ec* 
tacles  wluch  could  well  be  imagined.  Eeacning 
Cape  Hardwicke,  which  was  discovered  to  be  in  fact 
a  group  of  islands,  they  struck  eastward  toward  Cape 
Ouireooe,  which  seemdd  to  be  the  utmost  limit  of  the 
land  in  that  direction.    Proceeding  onward  in  their 


UBUTUNANT  06B0BN*8  BKPKDmON. 


485 


Bontbem  route,  tlie  eqiiadron  eoon  came  in  sight  of 
Gary  Isles,  and  then  of  the  flat-topped  region  between 
Cape  York  and  Dudley  Digges.    The  steamers  then 
rapidly  advanced  on  tlieir  nomeward  wajy.    On  the 
'>''th  of  August  thoy  reached  Wolstenholme  Island. 
Here  thev  were  stopped  by  the  floating  ice :  and  an- 
chorinjil  &t  to  an  iceoerg,  they  awaitea  the  first  open- 
ing wbieh  might  occur.    Here  began  tracer  again  of 
tho  noraade  Esquimaux;  and  thus  they  seemed  to 
have  returned  to  communion  with  the  rest  of  man- 
kind.   By  the  1st  of  September  the  vessels  still  re- 
mained closely  packed  m  the  ice ;  and  nothing  ap- 
peared to  the  view  from  the  mast-head,  except  the 
boundless  horizon  of  the  frozen  ocean.    It  was  nev- 
ertheless necessary  for  Captain  Osbom  to  make  a 
bold  push  of  some  description,  to  be  released  from  his 
conlinement,  for  starvation  itself  might  soon  surprise 
Lis  associates  in  their  imprisonment.    In  a  day  or 
two  a  fortunate  slackening  of  the  ice  encouraged 
them  to  attempt  on  entering.    So  difficult  and  slow^ 
was  their  progress,  tliat  they  did  not  advance  more 
than  the  snip  s  length  during  the  period,  and  after 
the  labors,  of  an  hour.     By  dint  of  constant  screwing    ^ 
and  heaving,  however,  some  advance  was  made.     ^ 
Gradually  the  sea  became  more  open ;  and  then  tho 
powers  of  the  steam-engine  were  brought  into  play. 
A  moment's  further  delay  might  have-  secured  their 
detention  for  the  whole  winter,  in  those  inhospitable 
and  frozen  climes.    After  a  day  of  excessive  exer- 
tions, the  ships  had  wormed  their  way  through  the 
floating  ice  to  the  open  sea  which  lay  to  the  south  of 
it,  and  thus  again  were  free. 

On  the  5th  of  September  the  squadron  commenced 
its  unobstructed  voyage  of  return  to  England.  In 
eighjidays  they  reached  the  latitude  of  Cape  Fareweh, 
and  at  length  safely  anchored  at  Grimby,  in  the 
Elver  Humber,  precisely  three  weeks  after  the  com- 
mencement of  their  homeward- bound  voyage.  The 
expedition  had  indeed  failed  either  to  rescue  Sir  John 


T\ 


me 


^.PBOOBEBS  OF  ABOTIO  DISOOTBBT. 


# 


Franklin,  or  even  to  soive  the  great  mystery  of  Mi 

.fate;  nevertheless  it  had  made  '^assurance  doubly 
isure"  tbat  he  had  not  been  lost  in  the  regions  which 
they  had  visitoi,  but  that  he  must  have  proceeded 
on  Lis  adventurous  way  to  a  very  remote  and  une- 
qualed  extreme  of  northern  latitude.  It  ascertained 
inat,  if  he  had  perished  at  all,  he  had  perished  in  the 
execution  of  one  of  the  boldest  and  most  desperate 
resolutions  ever  entertained  by  man,  to  explore  if 
possible,  the  utmost  limits  of  the  accessible  earth; 
and  to  arrive  as  near  to  the  Korth  Pole  as  it  was  pos- 
sible for  human  heroism,  endurance,  and  determina- 
tion to  approach. 

But  other  interesting  and  valuable  researches  were 
made  by  this  expedition,  which  deserve  notice. 
These  established  the  fact  that  the  Esquimau^  tribes 
which  now  inhabit  portions  of  the  Arctic  Zonie,  were 
once  very  numerous  along  the  whole  northern  shore 
of  Barrow's  Straits  and  Lancaster  Sound,  and  that  for< 
merly  the  Esquimaux  were  among  the  most  widelj 

^  diffused  races  on  the  earth,  so  far  as  superficial  ex- 
tent is  concerned.  From  Melville  Island  on  the  west, 
to  the  isolated  inhabitants  of  Northern  Greenland, 

'  called  Arctic  Highlands,  many  strange  and  ancient 
remains  were  discovered  in  various  sheltered  nooks 
and  corners  on  the  shore,  such  as  rude  houses,  cach^^ 
hunting  posts,  and  graves,  which  clearly  proved  that 
inhabitants  once  dwelt  in  this  sad  and  solitary  clime, 
who  have  now  either  become  exterminated,  or  have 
emi^ated  to  some  more  genial  region. 

The  origin  of  this  people  seems  to  have  been  in  the 
north-eastern  extremity  of  Asia ;  for  on  the  banks  of 
the  Lena  and  the  Indigirka,  and  along  the  whole  extent 
of  the  frozen  Tundray  which  faces  the  Polar  Seas,  as 

I  well  as  in  Kew  Siberia,  the  same  species  of  circular 
Btone  huts,  the  same  whalebone  rafters,  the  same  rude 
axes  made  of  stones,  and  the  same  primitive  imple- 
ments of  the  chase,  are  still  found  to  exist,  and  are 
nsed  alike  by  the  Esquimaux  of  Hudson  Straits  and 


i«iKD3VNijrr  oabobn's  vaavosaosx. 


487 


GreenUnd,  the  Innnit  of  Iforth  Amoriea,  and  the 
Tcbuktcbes  of  Behrine's  Straits.  It  is  probable,  there- 
fpre,  that  these  peojue  first  reached  the  American 
continent  firom  the  east  of  Asia.  The  Tchnktches  are 
the  only  tribe  of  Siberia  who  have  maintained  their 
independence ;  and  have  defied,  assisted  by  the  hor- 
rid rigors  of  nature,  the  overwhelming  power  of  Kus- 
Bia.  The  other  tribes  of  Siberia  narrate  how  one  of 
the  races  called  by  them  the  Omoki,  whose  homes 
were  as  numerous  on  the  banks  of  the  Lena  as 
the  stars  of  an  Arctic  night,  did  formally  remove 
to  unknown  regions;  supposed  by  them  to  be  in 
a  north-eastern  direction.  They  also  tell  of  an- 
other tribe,  termed  the  Onkillon,  who,  having  been 
attacked  by  the  Tchuktches,  took  shelter  in  a  dis- 
tant land  to  the  northward  from  Cape  Jakan.  This 
laud  has  now  been  found  actually  to  exist  in  that 
direction. 

These  people  eventually  reached  the  shores  of  Da- 
vis' Straits  and  the  Atlantic  Ocean ;  and  some  c^^ 
them  even  advanced  as  far  as  Lancaster  Sound,  aloii^ 
the  Parry  Group.  Compelled  by  the  necessities  of 
food,  and  attracted  by  the  proaucts  of  fishing  and 
hunting,  they  eventually  reached  Behring's  Straits ; 
and  thus  this  unfortunate  race  extended  over  a  vast 
proportion  of  those  inhospitable  but  habitable  realms 
which  lie  nearest  to  the  x^ole.  Among  the  proois  of 
this  fact  furnished  by  the  researches  of  Captain  Os- 
born's  expedition,  may  bo  mentioned  the  following : 
Ruins  of  the  description  already  mentioned,  were 
foi^d  between  Bathurst  and  Cornwallis  Land,  on  the 
whole  southern  shore  of  Cornwallis  Island,  on  Capes 
Spencer  and  Biley,  on  Badstock  Bay,  Ommaney 
Harbor,  Cape  Warrender,  and  on  the  shores  of  Jones' 
Sou^d.  Formerly,  also,  many  Esquimaux  lived  even 
at  thie  head  of  Bamn's  Bay.  On  the  coast  northward 
of  Cape  York,  many  deserted  villages  and  dead 
bodies  have  been  found ;  clearly  indicating  the  ex- 
istence of  a  people  who  have  now  either  become  ez« 


MS 


PBOOBBM  or  ABCfnO  MBOOTXttr. 


mt 


tinct,  or  hare  congregated  in  a  less  rigoroira  locality. 
All  these  tribes  and  races,  whatever  they  may  havd 
been,  undoubtedly  belonged  to  the  general  Esquimaux 
family,  who  first  originated  in  the  north-eastern  ex- 
tremity oi'Asia. 

Abotio  Sbabobiko  ExFEDmoN ;  a  JoTrBNAi  OF  A  Boat- 

TOYAOB  THROVOH  KuPBBT's  LaKD   AND   THE  ABOno 

.    '       Sba,  in  SsAitoH  OF  Sra  John  Fsanzun,  bt  Sm  John 
BioHABDSoN,  m  1851. 

The  commander  of  this  expedition  was  directed  by 
the  British  admiralty  to  leave  Endand  in  a  mail- 
steamer  for  Halifax  and  New  York;  and  from  the 
latter  place  to  proceed  to  Montreal,  in  order  to  confer 
with  Sir  George  Simpson,  governor  of  the  Hudson 
Bay  company's  settlements.  He  was  ordered  thence 
to  travel  oy  Lake  Huron  to  Saut  Ste.  Marie  and  Lake 
Superior,  and  there  embark  with-  a  small  crew,  and 

^■ail  along  the  chain  of  lakes  until  he  overtook  Mr. 

^%eily  whom  it  was  supposed  he  would  find  at  Isle  a 
la  Crosse. 
gl^  With  four  boats  well  adapted  to  this  service,  Sir 
w  John  Bichardson  was  ordered  to  proceed  and  exam- 
ine the  extensive  North  American  coast  between  the 
Mackenzie  and  Coppermine  Bivers.  Passing  the 
winter  at  Fort  Good  Hope,  or  Confidence,  near  Great 
Bear  Lake,  he  was  directed  in  the  following  spring  to 
resume  his  joumev,  and  explore  the  passages  between 
Wollaston,  Banks ,  and  Victoria  Lands,  so  as  to  cross 

'  the  routes  of  Sir  J.  C.  Boss'  detached  parties ;  and 
thence  to  return  again  to  Great  Bear  Lcike.  It  was 
hoped  that  this  comparativelv  novel  and  untried  di- 

-  rection  of  search,  might  probably  reveal  some  satis- 
factory indications  or  memorials  of  the  fate  and  situ- 
ation of  Sir  John  Franklin.  ,  . 
.  The  length  of  this  interior  navigation  to  the  Arctic 
Sea  from  Montreal  is  about  4,400  miles.  Sixteen 
hundred  of  these  are  performed  on  the  Mackenzie 


BIB  JOfOr  mOHABDSOir's  XXPEllITION. 


489 


"t   • 


Uiver  and  its  tributaries.  The  boats  employed  in  this 
expedition  measured  80  feet  in  length,  six  in  breadth, 
three  in  depth ;  and  were  provided  with  mastSf  sails, 
oars,  anchors,  and  tools;  and  each  weighed  half  a  ton. 
A  crew  of  five  men  was  deemed  snmcienSfor  each. 
Among  the  seamen  selected  to  man  the  boats,  were 
eappers,  miners,  carpenters,  blacksmiths,  armorers,  and 
engmeers.  These  four  boats  properly  provisioned,  were 
embarked,  together  with  the  men  ot  the  expedition, 
on  board  the  "Piince  of  "Wales"  and  "Westmin-s 
ster,"  bound  tt)  York  Factory,  one  of  the  posts  of  the 
Hudson  Bav  company ;  and  there  both  ships  eventu- 
ally arrived,  after  a  stormy  passage,  with  the  boats 
and  their  respective  crews.  In  May,  1851,  Sir  John 
Kichardson  and  his  chief  associate,  Mr.  Bae,  left  the 
honso  of  Mr.  Ballenden,  at  Saut  Ste.  Marie,  near 
Lake  Superior,  and  entered  on  the  active  duties  of 
their  expedition.  ^ 

V^o  will  omit  some  details  of  their  travels,  as  long 
ab  ^'i  continue  through  those  intermediate  regio^JBjk 
whi  iJ  B  '0  not  directly  connected  with  the  Arct^^ 
Zone ;  and  which  throw  but  little  light  upon  the  pe- 
culiarities of  that  remote  portion  of  the  earth.  The 
expedition  pursued  its  aesignated  i^ute,  until  at 
length  they  entered  the  estuary  of  the  Ma^enzie 
Uiver.  At  four  o'clock  in  the  morning  they  enmrked, 
and  crossing  a  shallow  bar  at  the  end  of  a  sand-bank, 
they  steered  between  Eichards'  Island  and  the  main 
land.  They  soon  perceived  about  200  Esquimaux 
coming  toward  them  in  their  canoes,  and  three  umiaks 
lilled  with  women  and  children.  It  was  necessary 
to  beat  oE  these  intruders,  who  by  hanging  on  to  the 
sides  of  the  boats  impeded  their  progress  ;  nor  were 
the  voyagers  certain  that  no  hostile  attack  was  in- 
tended by  these  half-starved  and  importunate  semi- 
savages. 

As  soon  as  these  two  parties  in  the  several  boats 
came  in  contact^  a  buisy  scene  of  barter  began  to  be 
enacted.    The  Esquimaux  had  arrows,  bows,  kniret 


Uf^ 


FBOOBaS  OF  ABOnO  DISOOYBIT^   ^^ 


of  copper,  or  of  boae,  and  articles  of  tiiAt  desoriptioii 
to  9^1  and  for  these  they  received  in  return  kniyes, 
filesT^tdiets,  awls,  and  needles.  The  articles  ob- 
tained by  the  explorers  were  indeed  of  little  service 
to  them^ipt  the  J  wished  to  conciliate  the  Esqui- 
maux ;  andinafimnch  as  the  latter  considered  a  gift 
without  an  equivalent  accepted  in  return  as  an  insult, 
it  was  necessary  to  barter  with  them  in  order  to  fur- 
nish them  the  articles  which  they  desired.  The  En- 
glish boats  were  mnc^  incommoded  by  the  crowds  of 
Esquimaux  who  were  disposed  to  hold  on  to  their 
sides,  and  it  became  necessary  to  use  violence  some- 
times to  compel  them  to  release  their  grasp.  At 
length  the  boat  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Clark  was 
attacked  by  the  Esquimaux  around  it.  An  attempt 
was  made  to  plunder  it.  A  struggle  ensued  between 
the  crew  of  src  men  and  the  assailants,  and  a  mVisket 
was  fired  by  Lieutehant  Clark,  as  a  signal  to.  his  as- 
sociates for  assistance.  The  other  boats  then  imme- 
gri^tely  wore  around,  and  came  to  the  protection  of 
^K  assailed.  Muskets  were  presented,  and  an  attack 
threatened  by  the  English  sailors ;  the  effect  of  which 
demonstration  was,  to  induce  the  Esquimaux  at  once 
'  to  desist  from  ^l  fui*ther  aggressive  operations,  and 
resume^iendly  relations. 

Thu«p8  the  boats  pursued  their  way,  they  were  ac- 
companied by  the  Esquimaux  canoes.  At  length  as 
they  began  to  lose  sight  of  the  land  entirely,  we  Es- 
quimaax  gradually  fell  behind  them,  and  returned  to 
their  encampment  on  the  shore  of  the  estuary.  Dur- 
ing this  intercourse  between  the  voyagers  and  the  na- 
tives, the  inquiries  of  the  former  were  directed  to  ob- 
taining information  in  reference  to  the  discovery 
ships*  But  the  natives  uniformly  persisted  in  de- 
claring, that  they  knew  nothing  about  any  white  peo- 
ple, or  any  ships  on  their  coast.  They  all  denied  hav- 
ing been  present  in  any  interviews  which  took  pAace 
between  their  countrymen  and  the  navigators  of  those 
seas  ia  previous  years.    One  person  alone^  In  answer 


SIB  ioas  BtOHABDSOir'B  ExvEDmosr. 


441 


to  tbo  inquiries  of  Captain  Biehardson,  declared  that 
a  party  or  white  men  were  living  on  a  neighbQ|;piff 
island,  called  Kichards'  Island.  J^nt  as  the  ^^edi- 
tion  had  visited  and  examined  that  locality  but  a  day 
two  previously,  his  assertion  was  known  Iflfee  false. 
Captain  Kichardson  requested  his  interpreter  to  in- 
form the  Esquimaux  that  he  had  recently  Been  there, 
and  knew  that  he  was  Iving ;  which  declaration  only 
called  forth  a  hearty  laugh  from  the  Esquimaux, 
whose  only  desire  was,  by  a  fabricated  story,  to  in- 
duce the  expedition  to  sojolirn  longer  in  the  neigh- 
borhood, and  waste  its  time  in  fruitless  researches. 

These  Esquimaux  are  a  singular  race,  and  one  of 
their  distinctive  peculiarities  is,  that  they  are  strictly 
a  littoral  people.    They  live  only  on  the  shore,  and 
they  inhaoit  an  area  of  nearly  6,000  miles  of  sea- 
board.   Their  habitations  extend  from  the  Straits  of 
Belle-isle  to  the  Peninsula  of  Alaska.  Throughout  this 
vast  extent  of  region  there  is  no  material  variation  in^ 
their  dialect,  except  what  mav  be  justly  termedNproi^ 
vincialisms.    An  interpreter  Dorn  on  the  east  main  o^^ 
western  shore  of  James'  Bay,  experienced  no  diffi- 
culty ill  understanding  the  language  of  the  Esqui- 
maux of  the  estuary  of  the  Mackenzie  ^although  the 
distance  between  the  two  localities  was  at  leastk^,500 
miles.    Traces  of  the  encampments  of  this  san^  race 
have  been  discovered  as  far  north  on  the  American 
continent  as  the  foot  of  the  boldest  adventurer  has  ' 
trodden.    Their  capacity  to  endure  the  privations  of  - 
these  frozen  and  rugged  regions,  results  evidently* 
from  their  disposition  to  subsist  on  blubber,  and  their^ 
long  practiced  ability  to  inhabit  houses  and  huts  con-^ 
structed  of  ice  and  snow.    They  employ  drill-timber* 
whenever  it  is  accessible ;  but  they  can  do  without  it,  ^ 
andean  find  a  good  substitute  in  the  fabrieation  of' 
their  weapons,  sledges^  and  boat^rames,  in  the  teeth  I 
and  bones  of  whales,  morses,  and  other  Bea-monsters.^ 
They  associate  together  in  large  numbers,  to  engage  - 
in  the  pursuit  of  the  whale ;  and  this  fact  indicate  ^ 


^:i 


442 


PBOOBBBS  OF  ABOTIO  DUOOTKBT.    ^ 


the  possession  of  no  small  degree  of  natnral  hardi- 
hood and  intelli^nce.  Those  of  the  Esquimaux  who 
havfi'been  received  into  the  service  of  the  Hudson 
Bay  company,  at  the  distant  fur-posts,  have  very  soon 
acquired||||ie  habits  of  their  white  associates,  and 
proved  Eventually  to  be  more  industrious,  intelligent, 
and  trustworthy  than  domesticated  Indians.  Among 
themselves  a  great  deal  of  honesty  prevails ;  and  the 
private  hunting-grounds  of  the  different  families  are 
secure  from  all  depredations  from  other  members  of 
the  nation.  But  their  dekterity  and  pertinacity  in 
thieving  the  property  of  strangers  are  very  remarka- 
ble. Iney  are  brave  in  their  conflicts,  and  are  devoid 
of  the  pusillanimity  of  the  Indians  of  the  southern 
zones.  All  their  peculiarities,  both  personal  and  na- 
tional, servo  to  establish  the  position  advanced  in  the 
preceding  article  of  this  work,  that  the  vario^g  Es- 
quimaux tribes  possess  one  and  the  same  origin,  and 
that  they  emanated  originally  fi'om  the  north-eastern 

tremity  of  the  continent  of  Asia. 

As  soon  as  the  Esquimaux  canoes  had  disappeared 
from  view,  the  boats  were  steered  toward  the  opposite 
shore,  at  a  spot  where  there  were  several  winter  hab- 
itations of  th%^atives.  This  place  is  situated  about 
eight  miles  to  the  eastward  of  Point  Warren.  The 
buildi%8  are  placed  on  a  spot  where  the  water  is 
sufliciently  deep  for  a  boat  to  come  close  to  the  beach ; 
so  that  the  natives  may  be  able  to  tow  a  whale  or 
seal  to  the  place  where  they  intend  to  cut  it  up.  The 
houses  themselves  were  constructed  of  drift-timber, 
strongly  built  together,  and  covered  with  a  layer  of 
eaxth.  from  one  to  two  feet  in  thickness.  Light  and 
air  are  admitted  through  a  small  low  door  at  one  ex- 
tremity;  and  even  this  aperture  in  winter  is  closed 
by  a  slab  of  ice.  In  that  case  their  greasy  lamps  sup- 
ply them  to  some  extent  with  heat,  as  well  as  with 
tight.  These  huts  are  large  enough  to  permit  ten  or 
twelve  people  to  seat  themselves  around  the  iire, 
built  iQ  the  center  on  the  ground.    In  winter  the  im- 


BIB  JOHN  BXOHABDSOM  8  ESPEOmON. 


az 


perfect  admission  of  fresh  air,  and  the  eiiluvia  ari- 
sing from  their  greasy  and  filthy  bodies,  render  their 
abodes  not  only  aisagreeable  in  the  extreme,  but  also 
exceedingly  unwholesome.  Yet  these  p|||uliaritie8 
characterize  the  whole  Esquimaux  tribes  throughout 
the  whole  extent  and  variety  of  their  diffusion. 

Havingresumed  their  route  on  the  4th  of  Angnst, 
Captain  Kichardsqn  pulled  for  three  hours  across  • 
Copland  Hutchinsdn  Inlet,  and  landed  at  length  on  its 
eastern  shore.    This  inlp<^^  is  about  10  miles  m  width, 
and  its  mouth  is  c^  'r.      d  by  sand  bank       Having 
computed  their  pofaicion,  .,iey  found  it  to  we  69°  44' 
north  latitude ;  and  the  variation  of  the  needle  was 
58°  east.    This  whole  coast  is  low,  though  in  the  in- 
land, some  sandy  cliffs  were  discovered.    The  soil 
was  soft,  boggy,  and  treacherous,  and  the  whole 
country  was  covered  over  with  ponds  and  small  lakes. 
On  the   8th  of  August   the  expedition  reached 
Cape  Brown.    Here  they  came  in  contact  again  witl^^ 
the  Esquimaux.    After  the  usual  exchange  of  article^^ 
had  been  completed,  inquiries  were  made  in  refer- 
ence to  the  missing  ships.    The  Esquimaux  declared 
that  no  large  ships  had  ever  visited  that  coast ;  and 
that  these  were  the  only  white  men  whom  they  had 
ever  seen.    It  seems  that  Captain  Bichardsc^  had 
visited  this  coast  twenty-three  years  before  on  a  coi|>- 
mercial  expedition ;  and  had  then  met  some  of  these 
game  people.      But  they  denied  having  the  least 
knowledge  or  recollection  of  him  or  of  his  associates. 
Captain  Eichardson  crossed    Eussel  Inlet,  and 
passed  Cape  Brown.    They  then  reached  Cape  Dal- 
housie  and  pitched  their  tent  upon  the  beach.    This 
island  and  the  cape  are  iiat ;  but  toward  the  sea  there 
are  steep  cliffs  40  and  50  feet  in  height.  There  are  also 
deep  ravines  in  the  interior,  produced  by  the  melting 
of  the  snows  in  the  beginning  of  summer.     From 
this  point  the  boats  steered  across  Liverpool  Bay, 
and  approached  Nicholson  Island.    They  then  lauded 
and  encamped  off  Cape  Maitland.    The  surfa^  of 


f 


Hi 


PBD0BE8S  OF  ABCtIO  DBOOTfittT.  * 


this  cape  is  level,  bnt  its  shores  are  girt  with  rugged 
cliffs  80  feet  in  height.    A  frozen  surfkce  is  con- 

"  stantly  exposed  to  view,  and  permanent  ground-ice  ia 
f'very where  to  be  found,  twenty  inches  oeneatU  the 
surface  of  the  soil.  Vegetation  is  very  meager  and 
scanty. 

From  this  point  the  expedition  proceedied  to  Ear- 
rowby  Bay,  and  Baillie's  Islands.  They  landed  at 
the  latter  place  at  evening,  and  pitched  their  tent  to 
pass  the  night  in  repose.  They  soon  discovered  a 
large  fleet  of  Esquimaux  canoes  approaching  in  the 
form  of  a  crescent,  in  the  dim  twilight.  The  object 
of  the  natives  was  to  trade ;  but  as  Captain  Eichard- 
son  wished  his  men  to  have  an  opportunity  to  repose 
during  the  night,  he  ordered  a  ball  to  be  fired  across 
the  path  of  tne  canoes.  This  immediately  stopped 
their  further  progress ;  and  an  interpreter  then  in 
formed  the  Esquimaux  that  there  would  be  no  barter- 

^Hng  that  night,  but  that  if  they  would  return  in  the 

^^orning  their  wishes  should  be  gratified.  After  a 
short  consultation  the  Esquimaux  seemed  to  be  satis- 
fied with  this  arrangement  and  retired.  At  two 
o'clock  the  next  morning  the  expedition  resumed 
their  journey,  and  soon  met  the  approaching  Esqui- 
maux; From  them  they  ascertained  that  their  sum- 
n|er  season  here  continues  only  during  two  months, 
of  which  this  (August)  was  one  ;  that  during  this  pe- 
riod they  have  no  ice  whatever ;  and  that  they  car- 
ried on  their  black- whale  fishing.  The  extent  of  their 
operations  usually  consists  in  the  capture  of  two 
whales  during  the  whole  summer — sometimes,  though 
rarely,  they  obtain  three.  Sometimes  they  are  alto- 
gether unsuccessful  and  secure  none.  In  that  case  the 
succeeding  winter  generally  proves  to  be  one  of  great 
want  and  hardship.  Their  ignorance  of  the  rest  of  the 
.  world  may  be  inferred  from  the  following  incident : 

-.  One  of  them  asserted  to  Captain  Richardson  that 
Cape  Bathurst  was  an  island.  When  the  latter  denied 
tihis  assertion,  the  Esquimaux  responded  with  great 


■'*■ 


Am  JOHN  BIGIIAKDSOn's  BZPEDinOlf . 


445 


sinceribr,  *^Are  not  all  lands  islands  t"  At  thit 
point  Captain  Eiohardson  bnried  some  pemmican 
and  erectod  a  signal-post.  A  hole  was  dug  on 
the  top  of  the  cliff,  in  which  a  case  of  pemmican 
was  deposited,  with  a  memorandum  explaining  the 
purposes  of  the  expedition.  The  utmost  care  was 
used  in  replacing  the  turf  so  as  to  avoid  detection ; 
6jme  drift  timber  was  then  placed  on  the  spot  and 
burndd ;  and  a  pole  painted  red  and  white  was  planted 
at  a  distance  of  10  feet.  To  induce  the  Esquimaux 
not  to  disturb  the  post,  some  articles  of  value  were 
suspended  upon  it.  Soon  several  Esquimaux  were 
seen  running  toward  the  pole ;  they  quickly  stripped 
it  of  its  hangings;  but  did  not  disturb  the  signal 
itself. 

From  this  point  the  expedition  proceeded  to  the 
south-east  of  Cape  Bathurst,  along  the  shore,  which 
sometimes  rose  to  the  height  of  250  feet.  At  Point 
Trail,  in  north  latitude  70^  10',  the  bituminous  shalo^ 
had  been  ignited  and  burned ;  and  the  bank  haa 
crumbled  down  from  the  destruction  of  the  beds,  pre- 
senting a  most  singular  appearance. 

August  the  11th  the  expedition  continued  their 
route  along  the  coast,  and  at  length  reached  Point 
Stivens,  and  on  the  13th  landed  on  the  shores  of  Sell- 
wood  Bay.  Their  next  sojourn  was  on  one  of  the 
western  points  which  terminate  Cape  Parry.  This 
portion  of  the  cape  presents  a  singular  aspect  when 
approaching  it  from  the  sea.  It  is  an  eminence  500 
feet  in  height,  which  far  surmounts  all  the  surround- 
ing region.  In  the  neighborhood  of  this  spot,  at 
Oockea-Rat  Point,  a  letter  was  deposited  withla  case 
of  pemmican ;  over  which  were  placed  fragments  of 
limestones,  covered  with  red  paint.  It  was  here  that 
the  idembers  of  this  expedition  first  saw  the  drilt* 
ice.  They  sailed  on  past  Olapperton  Island,  Point 
Pearce,  and  Point  Keats.  The  lirst  indications  of  the 
approach  of  winter  now  began  to  force  themselves 
upon  their  notice ;  for  the  sea  became  covered  witii 
g  28 


* 


iti$ 


yTBOOWBM  09  ABOTIO  DUOOfVSKtt 


tkin  ice,  whioh  sometimM  very  essentially  impeded 
their  progress.  At  Oape  Parry  they  still  saw  traces 
of  the  i^qnimaax;  they  had  the  nrst  severe  frost 
during  the  night ;  and  the  ice  already  exceeded  an 
inch  in  thickness. 

On  the  12th  of  September  the  expedition  nearly 
reached  Gape  Kendall.  It  had  proffressed  thus  far 
alonj^  the  north-western  coast  of  the  Korth  American 
continent^  without  meeting  any  traces  of  Sir  John 
Franklin.  At  this  point  the  sea  became  so  obstructed 
with  ice  that  it  was  impossible  to  pursue  the  jour- 
ney along  the  seanshore,  although  they  were  still  at 
some  considerable  distance  from  the  Ooppermine 
Biver,  the  appointed  boundary  of  their  travels.  Cap- 
tain  Bichardson,  determined  to  continue  the  jouniej 
by  land.  The  company  provided  themselvesi  with 
thirteen  day's  provisions  of  pemmioan,  with  cooking 
utensils,  bedding,  snow-shoes,  astronomical  instru- 
ments, fowling-pieces,  ammuniticm,  and  portable  boat, 
^ets,  and  lines.  Each  man  was  compelled  to  carry  a 
load  of  sixty-five  pounds.  The  boats  of  the  expedi- 
tion were  left  behind  on  the  shore,  and  the  tent  with 
a  few  cooking  articles  and  hatchets,  were  abandoned 
to  the  Esquimaux. 

On  the  3d  of  September  at  six  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, the  journey  commenced.  They  pursued  a  direct 
course  toward  the  bottom  of  Back's  Inlet.  The  snow 
was  deep^  and  advance  was  laborious  and  difficult. 
So  heavy  was  the  way  that  most  of  the  men  were  will- 
ing to  leave  behind  them  their  carbines.  At  night 
they  halted  under  a  basalt  cliff  200  feet  in  height. 
The  sea  was  here  full  of  ice.  They  still  occasionally 
met  Esquimaux,  whose  services  they  employed  in  fer- 
rying them  over  the  numerous  inlets  which  interrupt- 
ed their  way  along  the  coast.  Among  the  Esquimaux 
whom  Captain  luehardson  met,  were,  two  who  are 
meutionea  by  Mr.  Simpson.  One  of  these  was  rec- 
Og&und  bv  a  large  wen  which  marked  his  forehead; 
and  the  otner  by  hia  being  crippled,  and  usingcrutches 


■m  90Br  MOBAKDtON'l  EXPIDinOM. 


44r 


Thej  had  been  very  kiodly  treated  by  Messrs.  Dease 
and  Simpson ;  and  they  were  therefore  disposed  to 
be  irienaly,  together  with  their  whole  tribe,  toward 
the  white  people.    The  travelers  bought  skin-boota 
from  them,  which  proved  of   very  great  service. 
Captain  Richardson  permitted  none  of  his  men  to 
enter  their  hnts,  or  to  offer  any  indignity  to  these 
harmless  and  forlorn  beings.    He  himself  visited  one 
of  their  cabins,  both  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  a 
glimpse  of  their  household  appearance,  and  to  pre- 
sent some  needles  and  other  articles  to  their  women. 
He  found  in  one  hut  six  or  seven  females  sewing, 
seated  in  a  circle.    They  were  nearly  naked,  and  very 
dirty.    On  his  entrance  they  seemed  both  ashamed 
and  afraid.    Captain  Bichardson  shrewdly  conjec- 
tured that,  as  these  people  had  heard  of  the  approach 
of  the  strangers,  they  had  purposely  rendered  them- 
selves as  repulsive  as  possible,  by  rubbing  mud  and 
ashes  on  their  faces  and  persons.    They  received  his  * 
presents  in  a  friendly  manner ;  but  seeired  quite  re- 
lieved when  the  hardy  old  mariner  took  his  leave. 
This  is  a  singnlar  circumstance,  as  illustrating  how,  in 
every  clime  and  country  under  heaven,  men's  pas- 
sions, their  fears,  and  their  artifices  are  uniformly 
and  invariably  the  same ! 

At  length  the  travelers  arrived  on  the  shores  of 
Richardson's  River.  This  river  was  discovered  in 
1822,  by  some  hunters  of  Sir  John  Franklin's  party, 
and  its  outlet  was  then  erroneously  supposed  to  be 
only  five  miles  west  of  the  Coppermine.  In  1839 
Mr.  Simpson  explored  this  river,  and  ascertained  that 
it  falls  into  Back's  Inlet  in  north  latitude  67°  53'  67". 
Having  crossed  this  river  in  a  small  boat  of  Lieuten- 
ant Halkett,  which  could  carry  but  two  persons  at 
oncg,  they  resumed  their  march.  In  a  short  time 
they  gained  the  summit  of  the  ridge  which  divided 
the  valley  of  the  Richardson  from  that  of  the  Copper* 
mine  River.  This  ridge  was  now  covered  with  snow. 
From  its  summit  they  saw  in  the  distance  the  Cop- 


iiS 


rBooBHM  or  ABono  Diicomtr..  -• 


permine ;  and  at  tkreo  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  thej 
reached  its  banks,  several  miles  above  Bloody  Fall. 

On  the  10th  of  September  the  company  strack  the 
Kendal  River,  at  some  distance  from  its  junction 
with  the  Coppermine.  They  walked  nearly  three 
miles  along  its  banks,  seekins  for  a  crossing  place. 
No  such  spot  being  found,  they  were  compelled  to 
construct  a  raft,  and  thus  transport  themselves  over. 
This  raft  could  bear  but  three  persons  at  a  time ;  nev- 
ertheless all  of  them  passed  over  in  safety.  From 
this  point  tho^  traveled  directly  across  the  country  to- 
ward Dease  Biver.  Somesnowfell  both  during  the  day, 
and  also  during  the  succeeding  night.  On  the  12th 
they  reached  a  tributary  streani  of  the  Kendal  River, 
and  forded  it ;  the  ice-cold  water  rising  np  to  their 
waists.  On  the  14th  the  march  took  a  soutn-western 
direction.  They  found  the  soil  cracked,  hummocky, 
and  swampv ;  and  it  became  exceedingly  wearisome 
and  difficult  for  pedestrians.  On  the  15th  they 
crossed  a  branch  of  the  River  Dease  by  fording  it ; 
and  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  whole  party 
reached  Fort  Coniidence,  the  present  appointed  ter- 
mination of  their  journey,  and  their  quarters  for  the 
ensuing  winter. 

It  is  proper  that  wo  should  here  interrupt  the  nar- 
rative of  Captain  Richardson's  expedition  in  search 
of  Sir  John  Franklin,  by  detailing  some  of  the  infor- 
mation which  he  obtained  in  reference  to  the  Esqui- 
maux race — one  of  the  most  interesting  and  impor- 
tant items  of  Arctic  observation  and  scrutiny.  Wo 
have  already  given  a  few  details  on  this  subject  ou  a 
previous  page  ;  and  the  additional  light  thrown  upon 
it  by  the  researches  of  Captain  Richardson,  are  both 
valuable  and  entertaining.  The  views  presented  by 
Captain  R.  of  this  widely  diffused  people,  are,  as  will 
be  seen,  those  which  describe  them  as  t^ey  exist  on 
the  northern  coast  of  the  American  continent — being 
quite  a  different  locality  from  that  depicted  by  Cap 
tain  Osborn. 


lUL  jOUN  ftlOUiUUMOK'l  XXPEDIIIOH.  449 

Tbo  term  Esquimaux  is  probably  derived  from  th« 
words,  Ceux  qui  miaux ;  or  it  may  havo  originated 
from  tbe  shouts  of  Teyrnd  which  the  natives  uttered, 
when  theysurrounded  the  first  explorinff  ships  in  their 
canoes.  The  sailors  of  the  Huason  fiav  company's 
vessels  still  call  thorn  Seymda.  The  wora  Esquimaux 
does  not  belong  to  the  language  of  the  nation.  These 
invariably  call  themselves  Jnvrit^  the  jpeople^  from 
J-nukf  a  man. 

One  peculiaritv  of  this  race  is  that  they  alone,  of 
all  the  aboriginal  races,  are  known  to  inhabit  portions 
of  both  the  old  and  the  new  continents.    Their  lan- 
guage and  their  customs,  in  consequence  of  the  pe- 
culiarity of  their  position,  have  also  remained  strange- 
ly unaltered  by  any  contact  or  collision  witl  the  rest 
of  the  world.    They  confine  themselves  to  the  shores ; 
and  neither  wander  inland,  nor  cross  extensive  £eas. 
They  extend  alons  the  whole  northern  boundary  c"^ 
America,  from  Behrins's  Straits  to  the  Straits  of  Bell* 
isle,  and  along  both  shores  of  Greenland  and  Lab- 
rador.   Their  appearance  is  singular.    Their  fa  r>« 
are  egs-shapod,  with  considerable  prominence  in  uie 
cheek  Dones.    Their  foreheads  are  narrow  and  taper 
upwards.    Their  chins  are  conical  but  not  acute. 
Generally  their  noses  are  broad  and  depressed.    Their 
profiles,  in  consequence  of  the  receding  both  of  the 
forehead  and  the  chin,  present  a  more  curved  outline 
than  is  found  in  any  other  variety  of  the  Caucasian 
race.    Their  complexions  are  not  red,  but  of  an  inter- 
mediate hue  between  red  and  white.    They  havo  lit- 
tle or  no  beards'*;  but  the  hair  of  the  head  is  long, 
straight,  thick,  and  coarse.    The  men  u  e  of  medium 
size,  broad-shouldered,  and  muscular,    la  both  sexes 
the  hands  and  feet  are  small  and  well  formed.    The 
teeth,  especially  of  the  young  girlsj  are  generally  of 
BupeHor  regularity  and  beauty. 

The  chief  subsistence  of  this  extensive  race  depends 
upon  hunting  and  fishing.  In  the  spring  the  opening 
rivers  give  them  the  opportunity  to  spear  and  capture 


/y 


160 


«PlnloQidKNt  OF  Ajloiid  inlkTOTiR'r. 


!* 


the  fish  which  at  that  period  ascend  the  streams  to 
spawn.  Then  also  they  hunt  the  reindeer,  which 
hring  forth  their  yming  on  the  coasts  and  islands  be- 
fore the  enow  is  entirely  melted  on  the  ground. 
They  also  take  a  large  quantity  of  swans,  geese,  and 
ducKB.  The  months  of  July  and  August  are  em- 
ployed in  the  capture  of  whales ;  and  when  they  are 
successful  in  this,  their  own  sustenance  for  the  ensu- 
ing year  is  secured.  During  the  two  summer  months 
they  live  in  tents  made  of  skins,  and  then  they  provide 

^  Iheir  stores  of  food  for  winter  use.  At  Knid-Winter  they 
are  usually  in  total  darkness.  At  that  period  they 
live  in  houses  framed  of  drift  timber,  which  are 
thickly  covered  with  earth.  They  have  no  windows 
in  their  dwellings,  and  they  enter  by  a  low  trap  door 
inserted  either  on  the  side,  or  in  the  roofs.  The  floor 
is  covered  with  rude  timber,  and  they  have  Ao  fire- 
place. A  large  flat  stone  is  placed  in  th6  cen  ter  which 
supports  a  lamp,  bv  the  flame  of  which  they  often  cook. 
The  Esquimaux  nunter  can  trap  the  seal,  notwith- 
standing the  great  acuteness  and  vigilance  of  that  an 
imal ;  and  his  plunder  also  serves  to  assist  in  sustain* 
ins  Esquimaux  life  in  the  spring  months. 

Ihe  summer  architecture  of  this  race  is  peculiar. 
By  that  period  of  the  vear,  the  snow  has  acquired  a 
Buflicient  degree  of  coherence  to  form  a  light  build- 
ing material;  and  of  this  material  the  Esquimaux 
erect  comfortable  huts  which  are  dome-shaped,  and 
are  often  used  in  preference  to  their  tents.  They  first 
trace  e  circle  on  the  smooth  surface  of  the  snow. 
The  sides  are  built  of  slabs  of  ice  instead  of  brick  or 
granite.  The  summit  is  composed  of  similar  slabs; 
and  the  floor  is  laid  with  the  same  material.  Each 
slab  in  the  building  is  carefully  fitted  to  its  place, 

y  where  it  becomes  congealed  and  frozen  into  the  solid 
mass.    All  the  crevices  are  plugged  up,  and  the 
seams  carefuUv  closed,  by  throwing  loose  snow  over  ' 
the  fabric.    The  walls  are  only  three  or  four  inches 
in  thickness,  and  therefore  nearly  translucent ;  so 


•IB  iOHm  BXCHABDBON's  BXPEDinON. 


451 


that  they  admit  an  agi'eeable  light  to  tho  interior 
from  witQout.  All  the  furniture,  consisting  of  seats, 
tables,  and  sleeping  places,  are  formed  of  snow,  and 
are  covered  with  rein-deer  or  seal  skins,  which  ren- 
der them  quite  comfortable.  Often  these  houses 
are  built  contiguous  to  each  other,  with  low  galleries 
running  between  them.  These  houses  are  durable, 
and  the  sun  rarely  acquires  sufficient  strength  in  that 
cli  le  either  to  thaw  or  to  destroy  them. 

Ihe  Esquimaux  who  live  on  the  estuary  of  the 
*  Hackenzie  river,  carry  on  a  traffic  with  the  western 
Esquimaux  from  the  region  of  Point  Barrow  and 
Benring's  Straits,  whom  they  meet  half-way  between 
their  respective  homes  on  the  coast.  The  central 
Esquimaux  have  but  little  traffic  with  the  Europeans, 
and  articles  of  Eussian  manufacture  are  never  or 
rarely  seen  further  cast  than  Point  Atkinson.  Those 
who  live  between  Behring's  Straits  and  the  Mac- 
kenzie pierce  the  lower  lip  near  the  angle  of  the 
mouth,  and  fill  the  aperture  with  labrets  resembling 
buttons,  sometimes  made  of  blue  quartz,  and  some- 
times of  ivory.  Many  of  them  transfix  the  septum 
of  the  nose  with  an  ivory  needle.  Tlie  women  are 
generally  tattooed  on  the  chin ;  and  turn  up  and  plait 
meir  hair  carefully,  and  are  not  devoid  of  pride  in 
their  personal  appearance.  From  this  circumstance 
northern  navigators  justly  infer  that  more  deference 
is  paid  to  them  by  tlie  men,  than  usually  prevails 
among  semi-barbarous  tribes.  It  is  said  by  Captain 
Eichardfion,  that  the  unmarried  women  among  the 
Esquimaux  are  modest  and  decorous  in  their  deport- 
ment; but  that  the  married  ones  allow  themselves 
very  considerable  liberties,  and  that,  too,  with  the  con- 
nivance of  their  husbands.  Yet  this  reserve,  even 
amoiig  the  unmarried  Esquimaux  women,  does  not 
exist  among  the  tribes  located  on  the  northern  coast 
of  Greenland.  There  both  young  and  old  indicated 
their  vicious  laxity  to  the  navigators  by  signs  and 
gestures  of  the  most  indelicato  fti^d  unequivocal  na 


4..1 


j-^ 


iii^ 


l»^  I'lCOGUUBS  OF  ABono  disooybbuI 


tare,  atid  more  than  once,  wives  have  been  known  to 
,.be  offered  to  the  strangers  by  their  husbands  them- 
selves, plainly  and  witnout  disguise,  while  the  wo- 
man herself  stood  by,  and  freely  acquiesced  in  her 
.  proposed  prostitution. 
.  The  Esquimaux  like  most  barbarians  are  excellent 
mimics.     They  possess  the  power  of  imitating  the 

Gestures  and  voices  of  others  with  great  ability, 
hey  also  display  extraordinary  powers  of  grimace 
ijuad  contortion,  and  could  exhibit  themselves  in  the 
most  singular  positions  and  attitudes.  The  dress  of 
both  sexes  is  very  nearly  alike,  and  conlSists  Ot  a  coat 
with  a  pointed  skirt  both  before  and  behind ;  pantaloons 
or  leggings  which  extend  to  the  waist ;  and  long 
,  boots  made  of  seal  skin,  and  water  tight,  resembling 
moccasins.  They  have  acquired  considerably  akili 
in  the  preparation  of  whale,  seal,  and  deer  skins. 
These  they  use  for  various  purposes,  some  as  thongs 
and  lines  in  the  capture  ot  sea-beasts,  some  as  har- 
ness for  their  dog-sledges,  and  some  as  soles  for  their 
moccasins,  which  are  thus  rendered  water-proof. 
They  have  also  invented  a  light  water-proof  outer 
/dress,  formed  from  the  intestines  of  the  whale,  which 
they  secure  around  the  top  of  their  small  canoes, 
and  wliich  protects  them  from  the  waves  of  the  sea. 
.  They  acquire  extraordinary  skill  in  the  management 
of  their  canoes  or  kaiyaks,  and  possess  the  hardihood 
of  fearless  seamen.  Their  dogs  and  reindeer  consti- 
tute their  chief  wealth,  and  are  in  fact  quite  indispen- 
sable to  their  existence  and  comfort. 

The  religion  of  the  great  Esquimaux  race  is  a  sin- 
gular subject  of  inquiry,  and  yet  one  which  furnishes 
ionly  the  most  unsatisfactory  results.  Their  religious 
conceptions  are  simple  and  crude  in  the  extreme. 
There  is  but  little  to  know  of  them  on  this  point ;  and 
that  little  is  not  to  their  credit.  The  most  prominent 
idea  in  their  religion  is  the  belief  in  witchcraft,  and 
in  the  agency  of  evil  spirits.  They  worship  demons 
much  more  devoutly  than  they  worship  God.    Cer 


■IB  JOHN  BIOHABDSON'8  EXPEDinOK. 


468 


tain  individuals  among  them  profess  to  posBess  a 
great  influence  over  evil  spirits.  They  believe  that 
persons  are  killed  by  sorcery ;  that  they  are  and  may 
become  the  messengers  and  servants  of  the  devil ; 
that  sorcerers  may  change  the  appearance  of  indi- 
viduals who  are  under  their  spell ;  and  accordingly, 
sorcerers  are  themselves  a  powerful  cla^s  among 
them. 

Yet  the  Esquimaux  have  often  become  willing  and 
docile  converts  to  the  christian  faith,  as  taught  them 
by  the  Moravian  missionaries  in  Labrador  and  Green- 
land. They  have  readily  acquired  the  art  of  reading 
and  writing,  and  displayed  no  inconsiderable  apti- 
tude for  the  acquisition  of  knowledge.  The  language 
of  the  Esquimaux  is  admitted  by  the  most  learned 
philologists  to  be  similar  in  its  structure  to  the  rest 
of  the  Korth  American  tongues.  There  seems  to  be 
a  singular  inconsistency  between  the  comprehensive- 
ness and  artificial  structure  of  the  language,  and  its 
resemblance  to  that  of  neighboring  Indian  tribes,  and 
the  isolation  of  the  people  themselves.  Their  lan- 
guage does  not  materially  vary  along  the  whole  im- 
mense extent  of  country  over  which  their  race  is 
difliused;  thus  furnishing  another  evidence  of  the 
identity  and  unity  of  this  primitive  and  singular 
people. 

I  et  the  Esquimaux  are  divided  into  several  tribes 
according  to  their  different  locations.  Those  on  the 
southern  portion  of  King  William's  Sound,  are  called 
the  TchiigaUchih  f  and  they  are  located  between 
Behring's  Straits  and  Bristol  Bay.  Further  to  the 
north  the  Kuakatchewak  reside  between  the  island 
Kuniwak  and  Cape  Newenham.  These  are  neither 
nomadic  nor  given  to  the  chase ;  but  dwell  in  per- 
manent villages,  and  have  a  strong  attachment  to 
their  ancestral  homes.  In  each  of  these  villages  there 
is  a  public  building  termed  the  Kashim^  where  coun- 
dls  and  festivals  a'^e  held.  It  has  raised  platforms 
around  the  waUp  with  a  place  in  the  center  for  th« 


s* 


4M 


PBOOBESS  OF  ABOnO  DXBCX}TXRT. 


fire^  and  an  aperture  In  the  roof  for  the  escape  of  the 
smoke  and  the  admission  of  liffht. 

The  Tchukche  tribe  who  inhabit  the  shores  of  the 
Gulf  of  Ana4yn,  seem  once  to  have  had  possession  of 
the  coast  of  Asia,  as  far  westward  as  the  one  hundred 
and  sixtieth  parallel.  They  are  divided  in  the  Sed- 
entary, and  theBeindeer  Tchnkche.  These  are  both 
strong  and  powerful  races,  and  very  much  resemble 
in  their  appearance  the  North  American  Indians. 
The  encroachments  of  the  Kussians  and  Cossacks 
have  driven  them  back  beyond  the  Kolyma,  into  the 
north-eastern  corner  of  Asia ;  but  there  they  have  re- 
mained free  and  unsubdued  by  their  more  powerful 
assailants.  This  tribe  has  domesticated  both  the  dog 
and  the  reindeer,  of  which  they  possess  numerous 
herds.  They  are  skillful  traders  in  furs  and  wi^lrus' 
teeth,  which  they  exchange  for  tobacco,  articles  of 
iron,  hardware,  and  trinkets.  They  frequently  travel 
on  their  sledges  drawn  by  reindeer,  accompanied  by 
their  women  and  children,  their  arms,  tents,  and 
household  goods.  Their  yearly  journeys  continue  for 
six  months,  for  they  make  circuitous  routes  in  pursuit 
of  pasture  and  trade.  Previous  to  the  establishment 
of  the  Eussian  Fur  company,  these  people  yearly 
traveled  for  these  purposes  over  an  extent  of  seven- 
teen hundred  miles  of  North  American  coast.         ^ 

Another  tribe  of  the  Esquimaux  are  called  the 
Kutchins,  who  live  westward  between  the  Macken- 
zie and  Behring's  Sea.  The  males  possess  the  aver- 
age height  of  Europeans,  are  well  tbrmed,  with  reg- 
ular features,  high  foreheads,  and  light  complexions. 
The  women  resemble  the  men ;  and  Captain  Kichard- 
son  speaks  of  the  wife  of  one  of  the  chiefs  as  being 
so  handsome,  that  in  any  countiy  she  would  be  con- 
sidered a  fine  looking  woman.  The  women  have 
their  chins  tattooed,  and  the  men  paint  their  faces 
both  red  and  black.  Their  arms  consist  of  a  bow  and 
arrow,  a  dagger,  knife,  and  spear.  Eire-arms  have 
\atel7  b^en  introduced  among  them,  and  are  very 


SIR  J,>HN  KIGHAKDfiOIv's  EXFEDITIOK. 


455 


inneb  prized.  Where  a  man  hfta  not  been  able  to  ob« 
tain  a  gun,  he  always  carries  with  him  a  supply  of 
powder  and  shot,  and  for  these  he  obtains  a  sbare  of 
the  game  killed  by  the  possessors  of  a  enn  or  rifle. 
This  singular  expedient  exists  very  extensively  among 
the  Esquimaux  tribes. 

The  chief  men  among  the  Kutchins  practice  polyg* 
amy,  and  have  two  or  three  wives,  and  some  even 
five.    Very  poor  men  who  cannot  support  a  wife  re 
main  single.    But  it  is  said  that  a  good  wrestlei. 
whether  poor  or  rich,  can  always  obtain  a  wife.    In 
winter  the  w^men  perform  all  the  drudgery  about 
the  house.    They  collect  the  firewood,  assist  the  dogs 
in  hauling  the  sledges,  and  bring  snow  to  melt  for 
water.    Iney  do  everything,  in  fact,  except  cooking, 
and  that  is  attended  to  by  the  men  alone.    The  wo- 
men carry  their  infants,  like  the  rest  of  the  Esqui- 
maux, on  their  backs  in  seats  made  from  birch  bark, 
with  the  sides  and  back  resembling  those  of  an  arm- 
chair.   They  even  bandage  the  feet  of  their  children 
to  prevent  them  from  growing,  inasmuch  as  small 
feet  are  considered  handsome.    This  custom  reseiu- 
bles  that  of  the  Chinese,  except  that  it  is  not  confined 
to  the  females.    The  Kutchins  are  a  lively  and  cheer- 
ful people.    Dancing   and  singing  are  their  chief 
amusements ;  wrestling  and  all  kinds  of  athletic  di- 
versions are' in  fashion  among  them.    Their  religion 
also  consists  chiefly  iu  the  belief  in  sorcery  and  evil 
spirits,  whom  they  endeavor  to  propitiate  through 
their  shamans,  who  profess  to  be  able  to  communicate 
with  the  unseen  world,  and  to  possess  the  power  of 
prophesying  future  events.     When  any  one  of  their 
tribe  dies  suddenly,  or  unexpectedly,  the  event  is  al- 
ways attributed  to  sorcery ;  and  some  evil  spell  is 
charged  against  either  a  member  of  their  own  tribe  or 
of  some  neigboring  one.   Then  blood-money  is  imme- 
diately demanded,  and  if  it  be  refused,  they  do  not 
rest  until  an  opportunity  is  found  to  avenge  the  sup- 
posed murder  by  s  )me  retributive  deed  of  violence 


Me 


.'K 


P&OaBSSS  OF  ABOTIO  DI8Q0VBRV.. 


and  death.  An  instanco  is  narrated  in  wUcli  blood 
•money  was  demanded  and  received  for  several  years, 
for  the  supposed  death  of  a  relative  who  was  after- 
ward discovered  to  be  still  alive.    When  demand  was 

^.again  made  the  ensuing  year  for  tlie  usual  payment, 
three  of  the  party  making  it  were  slain  in  expiation 
.of  their  falsehood  and  extortion. 

%  These  Kutchins  are  treacherous  and  warlike;  and 
generally  engaged  in  hostilities  with  the  surrounding 
tribes.  One  half  of  the  population  of  the  Yukon 
has  thus  been  destroyed  during  the  last  twenty-iive 
years.  They  pass  the  summer  months  chiefly  in  dry- 
ing the  white-iish  for  winter  use.  Their  wealth  con- 
sists partly  in  beads ;  and  to  become  a  chief  among 
the  Kutchins,  a  man  must  have  beads  equal  in  value 
to  the  amount  of  two  hundred  beavers.  In  summer 
when  they  are  traveling  they  rarely  erect  their  tents. 
In  winter  their  encampments  are  usually  placed  in 
groves  of  fir  trees,  where  they  either  live  in  huts  or 
m  their  winter  tents  constructed  of  skins  with  the  hair 
unremoved. 

The  process  of  courtship  among  these  people  is 
very  simple  indeed.  The  lover  goes  early  m  the 
morning  to  the  abode  of  the  object  of  his  passion, 
and  wiuiout  saying  anything,  begins  to  bring  in  wa- 
ter ;  to  heat  the  stones  which  are  used  to  create  steam 
for  their  bath;  and  to  prepare  food.  The  inmates 
then  ask  him  who  he  iS)  and  why  he  does  this.  He 
states  that  he  wishes  to  obtain  the  daughter  of  the 
man  who  dwells  there  as  his  wife.  If  he  is  not  re- 
fused, he  remains  as  a  servant  in  the  family  for  a 
year,  and  at  the  termination  of  that  probationary  pe- 
riod he  receives  both  a  reward  for  his  services  and  his 
bride  into  the  bargain.  No  ceremony  of  marriage 
takes  place  between  them.  When  a  man  dies,  he  is 
mourned  by  his  whole  clan.  Slavery  ex|st»^among 
them  to  some  extent ;  and  those  who  are  in  bondage, 
are  prisoners  taken  captive  in  war,  who  are  often  sold 

j.nd  re-sold  by  different  owners,  unless  they  are  re 


BIB  JOHN  BICHASDSOk's  EXPEDITION. 


457 


deemed  bj  their  own  relatires*  These  slaves  have 
been  known  to  be  sometimes  sacrificed  as  victims  to 
the  shades  of  their  departed  warriors  and  lieroes. 
They  also  possess  the  art  of  manufacturing  various 
articles  of  iron  ware ;  an  accomplishment  which  they 
probably  derived  at  an  early  period,  from  their  inter- 
course with  Bnssian  traders. 

The  winter  having  at  length  passed  away,  the  trav' 
elers  who  composed  Sir  John  Kichardson's  company 
at  Fort  Confidence,  prepared  in  the  ensuing  spring  to 
resume  their  operations.  It  vet  remained  their  duty  to 
reach  Wollaston  and  Victoria  Lands,  and  thus  to  com- 
plete the  search  in  1'  at  direction.  In  consequence  of 
the  forced  desertion  and  loss  of  the  boats  of  the  expe- 
dition as  previously  narrated,  it  would  have  beem  im- 
practicable for  the  whole  party  to  accompany  those 
who  performed  this  journey ;  nor  was  tnis  in  fact 
necessary  ;  and  Mr.  Rae,  the  younger  and  more  ro- 
bust associate  of  Captain  Kichardson.  was  selected  to 
perform  the  service  which  yet  remained.  The  ability 
and  zeal  of  this  gentleman  well  fitted  him  for  the 
task.  He  had  already  explored  the  country  between 
Fort  Confidence  and  the  Coppennine  Kiver  during 
the  winter  months,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining 
the  best  route  to  be  followed  in  the  spring. 

Accordingly,  in  April  Mr.  Rae,  taking  charge  of 
the  only  boat  which  the  expedition  stiU  possessed, 
conveyed  provisions,  boat-stores,  and  various  other 
necessaries  on  do^-sledges,  across  toward  the  Kendall 
Eiver,  and  postedtwo  men  at  Flett's  Station,  together 
with  two  Indians,  to  protect  them.  Six  men  composed 
the  crew  of  the  boat  under  the  command  of  Mr.  Rae. 
Two  men  were  left  in  charge  of  Fort  Confidence. 

Mr.  Rae  having  waited  for  the  breaking  up  of  the 
ice  on  the  Dease  River,  hauled  his  boat  thither,  on 
whicbhe  embarked  on  the  8th  of  June.  His  ascent 
of  the  stream  was  slow,  in  consequence  of  the  large 
masses  of  ice,  some  of  them  miles  in  length,  which 
impeded  his  progress.    They  ascended  the  south-east* 


*% 


458 


PB00BIB8  OF  ABOnO  DISOOYEBT. 


u-^p-' 


em  branch  of  that  stream.  On  the  17th  tliey  passed 
over  the  lake  from  which  the  river  flows,  on  the  ice. 
It  contains  some  islands  and  is  four  miles  in  width. 
From  this  lake  they  traveled  overland  for  six  iniles 
nearly  dne  east,  and  on  the  21  st  they  reached  the  Ken- 
dall Kiver,  to  which  the  provisions  had  been  previ- 
ously conveyed  in  April.  They  then  descended  the 
Kendall  to  the  Ooppermine  Eiver. 
.  At  this  place  they  were  detained  by  the  ice,  which 
was  still  unbroken,  during  five  days.  They  then  Sf  iled 
down  the  Ooppermine  to  the  sea ;  and  K)und  a  nar- 
row channel  along  the  shore  of  Richardson  Bay, 
where  the  ice  still  lay  ao^ainst  the  rocks^  They  pro- 
ceeded on  and  rounded  Point  Mackenzie,  and  entered 
Back's  Inlet,  which  was  then  but  partially  opened. 
They  soon  reached  the  head  of  the  inlet,  and  at, once 
sailed  up  Bae  Eiver,  which  Oaptain  Eichardson  had 
discovered  the  preceding  autumn. 
f^'  For  the  purpose  of  examining  the  country,  Mr.  Rae 
followed  the  river  for  twenty  ffeoffraphical  miles  in- 
land. It  is  very  straight  in  its  direction,  and  flows 
oyer  a  bed  of  limestone.  Its  banks  are  extremely 
rugged,  and  sometimes  presented  precipices  200  feet 
in  height.  The  party  then  returned  to  the  mouth  of 
the  river.  Their  position  now  was  67°  65'  20"  north 
latitude.  They  reached  Cape  Kendall,  where  they 
experienced  a  heavy  thunder-stornr  "^hich  compelled 
them  to  land.  '  On  the  27th  tbey  continued  their 
course  to  Cape  Hearne.  Basil  Hall  Bay  they  found 
filled  with  unbroken  ice  from  one  side  to  the  other. 
The  next  day  a  crack  occurred  in  the  ice  large  enoush 
to  permit  the  boat  to  reach  an  island  in  the  middle 
of  the  bay.  On  tlie  north  side  of  this  island  they 
found  some  open  water  which  enabled  them  to  ad- 
vance two  miles  further.  On  the  30th  they  reached 
Cape  Krusenstern. 

f  his  was  the  most  suitable  spot  from  which  to  de* 
sert  the  shore,  and  commence  the  traverse  or  direct 
route  toWollaston  Land,  passing  near  to  Douglass 


BIB  JOHN  BTOHABDSON  S  EXFBblTION. 


1^1 


459 


Island.  This  circnmstanco  was  more  fortunate,  as 
the  condition  of  the  ice  along  the  shore  rendered 
their  further  advance  in  that  direction  impossible. 
The  party  disembarked  here  and  piflched  their  tents 
on  tiie  top  of  the  cliffs,  and  waited  for  a  more  favor- 
able state  of  the  ice ;  which  had  already  commenced 
to  break  up.  Here  they  were  visited  by  some  Esqui- 
maux, who  informed  them  tliat  they  had  seen  several 
natives  of  "NVollaston  I^and  during  the  preceding  win- 
ter, and  had  been  informed  by  them  that  no  European 
ships,  boats,  or  seamen  had  ever  visited  their  coun- 
try. The  situation  of  the  party  here  was  ascertained 
to  be  68°  24'  36"  north  latitude. 

The  ice  in  the  bay  wad  not  sufficiently  cleared  to 
permit  Mr.  Rae  to  proceed  until  the  19th  of  August. 
Until  this  period  there  had  been  a  closely  packed 
stream  of  ice  stretching  along  the  entire  snore,  and 
grinding  against  the  rocks  as  it  was  di^en  upon 
them  by  the  wind.  Having  pulled  seven  milea  from 
land  and  being  yet  three  miles  distant*  from  Douglass 
Island,  they  were  met  by  a  stream  of  ice  so  closely 
packed  and  so  rough,  that  it  was  impossible  cither 
to  pass  over  it  0^  through  it.  This  compelled  the 
company  to  return  to  their  former  position  on  the 
shore.  During  several  succeeding  days  they  pole  i 
their  way  along  the  beach,  and  thus  advanced  a  few 
miles  to  the  southward.  On  the  evening  of  tho  22d 
Mr.  Eae  ascended  a  hill  near  the  shore,  and  there  be- 
held with  a  spy-glass  nothing  in  the  direction  of  Wol- 
laston  Land  but  the  white  ice  forced  upward  by  the 
wind  into  irregular  heaps;  while  to  the  east  and 
south-east  there  was  a  lar^e  -space  of  open  water,  be- 
tween which  and  the  ice-bound  shore,  a  vast  stream 
of  ice  some  miles  in  length  was  driving  rapidly  toward 
Cape  Heame.  ;^ 

There  was  novi^  no  prospect  that  the  sea  would  opeA 
so  as  to  permit  the  frail  craft  in  which  Mr.  Eae  and 
his  men  were  embarked  to  venture  across  the  main 
to  Wollaston  Land.    Winter  was  then  very  near ; 


400 


PBOilurBO  OF  ABOnC  Dl|KX>y£BT. 


and  Mr.  Rae  was  reluctantly  compelled  to  give  the 
order  to  return  to  the  Coppormine  Kiver.  In  ascend- 
ing this  river  to  the  Blooay  Fall,  the  company  met  the 
misfortune  of  losing  Albert,  their  Esquimaux  inter- 
preter, and  one  of  the  most  useful  members  of  the 
expedition.  He  was  drowned  in  attempting  to  extri- 
cate the  boat  from  a  dangerous  eddy  into  which  it 
had  been  drawn.  The  boat  was  lost  with  him  Tliey 
then  commenced  their  journev  on  foot  acrosa  the  land 
toward  Great  Bear  Lake,  each  man  carrying  a  weight 
of  about  eiffhty  pounds.  After  seven  days'  march 
from  the  Bloody  Fall  the  party  reached  Fort  Coiiil- 
dehce,  whence  the  expedition  had  started.  They  had 
failed  to  discover  any  traces  of  Sir  John  Franklin, 
and  had  not  even  reached  WoUaston  Land,  the  pro- 
posed terminus  of  their  journey,  in  consequence  of 
the  strait  bein^  filled  with  impassable  ice. 

Meanwhile  Captain  Bichardson  and  the  rest  of  the 
men  belonging  to  the  expedition,  explored  Bear  Lake 
and  Cape  McDonald.  They  then  reached  Fort  Frank- 
lin. The  only  vestige  of  the  latter  which  remained, 
was  the  foundation  of  the  chimney-stack.  Thence 
they  proceeded  to  Fort  Norma%;  They  then  em 
barked  on  Bear  Lake  Kiver  and  descended  with  the 
cuiTent  to  its  mouth.  Betracing  the  route  which 
they  had  pursued  in  their  outward  journey  during 
the  preceding  year,  the  company  eventually  reached 
Methy  Lake;  where  Captain  Bichardson  received 
his  first  letters  from  England,  which  had  been  brought 
up  from  Canada  by  the  governor's  canoe,  which  annu- 
ally leaves  La  Chine  in  May.  He  arrived  at  Norway 
House  on  the  13th  of  August,  and  there  the  men 
composing  the  expedition  were  discharged.  The  Eu- 
ropeans amon^  them  were  sent  down  to  York  factory 
to  sail  to  England  in  one  of  the  ships  of  the  Hudson 
Bay  companjr. 

Captain  Bich^dson  himself  returned  by  way  of 
Boston  to  Liverpool ;  and  thus  ended  this. additional 
littempt  to  disccver  S'r  John  Franklin's  fate,  without 


CULPTAUr  KBinnCDT'B  TOtAlB,  I  461 

having  obtained  the  slightest  clue  of  them ;  althongh 
the  putn  of  search  pursued  possessed  some  novel  au4 
yeryconsiderable  advantages  in  its  favor. 

TiuE  Second  Yoyaoij;  of  the  Prince  Albbbt  in  Search 
OF  Sib  John  Fbanklin,  undub  tub  command  of  Wil- 
liam Kennedy,  in  1853. 

This  expedition  was  fitted  out  for  the  second  time 
by  the  liberality  of  Lady  Franklin.  The  vessel  was 
Bmall,  but  had  proved  herself,  on  a  former  voyage 
to  the  Polar  seas,  well  adapted  to  the  ser  ice.^  That 
voyage  resulted  in  discovering  traces  of  the  the  miss- 
ing ships  at  the  entrance  ot  Wellington  Channel; 
and  on  its  return  Lady  Franklin  instantly  resolved  to 
equip  the  present  undertaking,  with  hopes  of  more 
complete  success ;  and  Captain  Kennedy  was  invited 
by  her  to  take  the  command.  ^ 

In  May,  1851,  the  Prince  Albert  lay  in  the  harbor 
of  Aberaeen  ready  for  sea.  Along  the  sides  from 
the  keel  to  about  two  feet  above  the  water-line,  there 
had  been  placed  a  doubling  of  planking  two  and  a 
half  inches  thickl|||The  bows  and  stern-posts  were 
sheathed  in  wrou^it  iron,  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in 
thickness.  Her  hold  had  been  strengthened  with  a 
perfect  labyrinth  of  cross-beams,  for  the  purpose  of 
better  enabling  her  to  endure  the  immense  pressure 
of  the  ice.  The  object  of  this  second  expedition  of 
the  Prince  Albert,  was  to  continue  the  search  by  way 
ot  Prince  Megenfs  IrUety  an  important  portion  of  the 
Polar  region,  which  neither  Captain  Penny  nor  Cap- 
tain Austin  had  explored,  nor  any  other  Arctic  voy- 
ager previous  to  that  period. 

The  crew  of  the  frince  Albert  consisted  of  the 
commanding  officer  and  seventeen  men.  Sho  was 
furnished  with  two  large  and  valuable  boats,  one  of 
gutta-percha,  and  the  other  of  mahogany ;  together 

*  S««  page  848  of  this  volume  for  the  details  of  this  voyage^ 

29 


46d 


*boAm 


OW  AXOnO  DltOOTZXtT. 


w!t1i  Mveral  smaller  onef.  The  Tessel  wii<  <v^nvl. 
•ioned  for  two  years.  On  the  22d  of  May  si.  !?ft 
Aberdeen  Harbor.  Lady  Franklin  was  then  on  board, 
and  as  she  loft  the  ship  after  oxpressini?  all  her  wishes 
and  hopes  for  the  success  of  the  gallant  crew,  was 
loudly  and  enthusiastically  cheered,  as  she  deserved 
to  be,  as  she  descended  the  vessel's  side  to  return  to 
the  shore.  On  the  23d  of  June  they  made  Hoy 
Sound,  and  soon  reached  Gape  Farewell.  Captain 
Kennedy  had  been  instructed  to  examine  Prince  Ke- 
eent's  Inlet,  and  the  passages  connecting  it  with  the 
Western  Sea,  south-west  of  Cape  Walker.  To  the 
li^tter  point,  strong  probabilities  in  favor  of  finding 
traces  of  Sir  John  Franklin  concentrated ;  inasmuch 
as  it  was  supposed  to  be  likely  that  he  abandoned  his 
vessels  to  the  south-west  of  Cape  Walker ;  from  the 
fact  that  he  himself  eutertainea  the  opinion  that  An 
open  paHage  '^pa  to  be  found  from  the  westward  into 
the  south  part  of  Eegent's  Inlet ;  and  because  this  re- 
gion of  countrv  was  known  to  possess  considerable 
animal  life,  ana  he  would  have,  the  stores  placed  at 
Fury  Beach  soon  within  his  reach.  It  was  also 
thought  that  he  would  have  pursiNR  this  route,  inas- 
much as  he  more  probably  expected  assistance  to  be 
sent  him  by  way  of  Lancaster  Sound  and  Barrow 
Straits,  into  which  Begent's  Inlet  opened,  than  by  any 
other  direction.  ' 

By  the  1st  of  July  Captain  Kennedy  was  in  full 
view  of  the  shores  of  Greenland.  They  then  pre- 
sented a  spectacle  of  more  than  ordinary  interest  and 
sublimity.  As  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  thev  seemed 
a  sterile  and  iron-bound  coast,  diversified  here  and 
there  with  huge  cliffs  of  rock  and  ice,  ascending 
sternly  into  the  wintry  heavens  a  thousand  feet  in 
height.  Often  gloomy  caverns  were  seen  in  the  ice 
which  were  portals  for  the  discharge  of  some  half- 
frozen  stream  into  the  ocean,  fillea  with  small  ice- 
bergs which  were  but  rolling  and  tossing  in  the  fiood. 
The  vessel  soon  passed  Capes  Desolation  and  Cou> 


« 


OAFTAIM  XENHEDT  ■  YOTiOK. 


4ei^ 


fort ;  and  by  the  8th  of  July  they  were  throe-fourtha 
of  tlieir  way  up  Baffin's  Bay,  and  nearly  opposite  to 
the  Danish  villago  of  Upernavick.  At  this  village 
tliev  took  on  board  six  powerful  Esquimaux  dogs,  and 
sealskin  boats  adapted  to  the  Arctio  regions. 

On  the  13th,  the  Prince  Albert  fell  in  with  the 
American  squadron  which  had  just  escaped  from  their 
extraordinary  drift  of  eight  months  in  the  heart  of  • 
the  pack,  through  Lancaster  Sound  and  Baffin's  Bay. 
Finaing  Melville  Bay  completely  closed  by  the  ice, 
Captain  Kennedy  determined  to  attempt  a  passage 
further  south.  After  four  days  of  difficult  and  peril- 
ous navigation,  they  succeedea  in  effecting  an  advance 
of  120  miles  through  the  packed  ice,  and  reached 
"West  Water  on  the  2l8t  of  August.  This  was  a  very 
perilous  exploit,  and  is  one  which  has  proved  the  de« 
struction  of  many  a  bold  adventurer  in  those  seas. 
The  small  dimensions  of  the  Prince  ^Albert  seem  to 
have  given  her  great  advantages  over  her  more  bulky 
associates.  On  the  26th  of  August  they  were  on* 
Pond's  Bay,  and  were  here  for  the  last  time  visited 
by  a  small  como^y  of  Esquimaux.  The  extreme 
rarity  of  the  atn^phere  in  these  northern  climes, 
was  proved  by  the  fact,  that  tlie  voices  of  the  Esqui- 
maux could  be  clearly  heard  as  they  approached  the 
vessel,  at  the  distance  of  eight  miles. 

From  Pond's  Bay  Captain  Kennedy  steered  throush 
Lancaster  Sound.  On  the  3d  of  September  ne 
reached  Barrow  Straits.  At  this  point  he  attempted 
to  reach  Cape  Rilejy,  in  hope  of  there  finding  traces 
of  Sir  John  Franklin ;  but  after  bearing  up  repeated- 
ly for  the  North  Land  through  heavy  fogs,  snow,  and 
gales,  was  compelled  to  abandon  tne  purpose.  On 
the  4th  of  September  Captain  Kennedy  arrived  at  the 
mouth  of  Prince  Eegent's  Inlet,  one  of  the  special 
objects  of  his  search.  He  there  found  an  unbroken 
barrier  of  ice  extending  as  far  down  the  west  side  of 
Prince  Eegent's  Inlet  as  the  eye  could  see,  piled  up 
in  dense  masses  on  the  shore.    The  eastern  side  aaa 


464^^ 


FBOOBE88  OF  ABOnO  mSOOf  KXT. 


-«» 


middle  of  the  inlet  were  comparatively  open.  This 
state  of  the  ice  forbade  farther  progress  m  the  'in- 
tended direction.  They  attempted  to  run  into  Leo- 
pold Harbor,  but  found  that  also  impossible.  Thence 
they  ran  down  to  Elwin  Bay  to  iJatty  Bay,  and  to 
Fury  Beach,  finding  them  all  closed.  They  were 
very  nearly  involved  in  the  position  which  had  proved 
the  destruction  of  the  Fury — ^in  a  narrow  lane  be- 
tween the  shore  and  an  extensive  field  of  moving  ice. 
Being  thus  excluded  entirely  from  the  western  shore 
of  the  inlet,  they  were  compelled  to  sail  to  the  oppo- 
site. After  making  a  circuit  of  some  forty  hours 
along  a  high  and  dead  wall  of  ice,  they  reached  Port 
Bowen  on  the  5th.  Landing  here,  Captain  Kennedy 
found  a  few  traces  of  Sir  E.  Parry's  party.  These 
were  several  cairns,  a  fire-place  of  stones,  pieces  of 
canvas,  nails,  and  broken  pipes.  There  was  here, 
also,  a  single  ^ve,  the  lonely  resting-place  of  one 
John  Cottrell,  a  seaman  of  the  Fury,  who  was  buried 
in  July,  1825,  aged  thirty-nine. 

It  was  still  regardod  as  of  the  utmost  importance  to 
reach  Port  Leopold,  and  there  oflPqjj^a  landinff.  On 
the  9th  having  crossed  the  inlet,  aworought  the  ship 
to  within  several  miles  of  Cape  Seppings,  the  southern 
point  of  Port  Leopold,  Captain  liennedy  determined 
to  land  with  the  gutta-percha  boat,  and  four  seamen, 
for  the  purpose  of  making  explorations.  He  found  a 
narrow  lane  of  water  which  brought  them  quickly  to 
the  shore.  On  ascending  the  clins  on  Cape  Seppings, 
the  appearance  of  the  ice  was  such  as  to  induce  Cap- 
tain Kennedy  to  conclude  that  very  soon  the  Eegenrs 
Inlet  would  become  clear  and  navigable.  After  an 
hour  spent  on  shore,  he  prepared  to  return  to  the 
ship,  but  found  his  progress  entirely  cut  off  by  the 
ice,  which,  during  his  delay,  had  entirely  changed 
its  position.  Night  soon  came  on.  The  ocean  was 
covered  with  huge  masses  of  ice;  grinding,  tossing 
and  rearing  furiously  on  every  side.  To  attempt  to 
r^ach  ihe  snip  then,  was  directly  to  court  destruction 


* 


OAFTAnr  Kennedy's  totage.^ 


465 


They  wero  compelled  to  draw  up  their  boat  on  the 
beach,  and*  turning  her  over,  to  prepare  to  pass  the 
night  under  her.  So  intense  was  the  cold  that  Cap- 
tain Kennedy  was  compelled  to  prevent  the  men 
irom  sleeping  during  the  whole  night,  knowing  that 
that  alone  would  prevent  them  from  freezing  to  death. 
When  the  next  morning  dawned,  and  they  looked  out 
on  the  troubled  sea,  they  found  that  every  vestige  of 
the  Prince  Albert  had  vanished. 

This  position  of  the  captain  and  his  men,  was  both 
unpleasant  and  dangerous.  He  determined  lirst  to 
fall  back  to  Whaler  roint,  where  Sir  James  Ross  had 
deposited  a  store  of  provisions.  They  found  the 
house  erected  by  Sir  James,  still  standing,  and  the 
provisions  in  good  order,  consisting  of  pemmican, 
chocolate  and  biscuit. 

It  was  now*  the  10th  of  September  and  winter  was 
upon  them.  The  only  remedy  for  the  lonely  exiles, 
was  to  make  the  best  preparations  possible  to  pass  the 
winter  at  Whaler  Point,  hoping  in  the  ensuing  spring 
to  obtain  a  rescue.  It  was  a  sad  and  sudden  termi- 
nation to  the  voyage,  and  they  submitted  to  it  most 
reluctantly.  They  went  to  work  and  transformed 
the  launch  left  there  by  Sir  James  Eoss  into  a  shelter, 
by  laying  her  main-mast  on  supports  at  the  bow  and 
stern,  and  spreading  over  them  two  sails.  This  pro- 
cured them  a  shelter.  A  stove  was  set  up  in  the 
center  of  the  boat  with  the  pipe  running  through  the 
roof.  This  warmed  them.  They  obtained  blankets 
and  clothes  from  the  depot  left  by  Sir  James;  and 
this  rendered  their  condition  moi'e  tolerable.  Thus 
their  dreary  residence  in  those  Polar  regions  began, 
with  the  prospect  of  a  long  and  increasingly  rigorous 
winter  before  them.  What  the  final  issue  might  be, 
they"  could  not  predict.  Time  alone  could  solve  that 
mystery.  The  or\j  signs  of  life  which  appeared 
around  them,  were  i  few  Polar  bears  and  foxes. 

Happily  an  unexpected  termination  was  put  to 
their  danger  and  suspense  on  the  17th  of  September, 


t 


466 


PBOOBBBS  OF  ABOTiO  PISOOVSBT. 


by  the  sudden  appearance  of  a  party  of  seven  men 
under  Mr.  Bellot,  who  had  left  the  Princer  Albert  in 
bearch  of  the  absentees,  and  had  dragged  the^  jolly- 
boat  all  the  way  from  Batty  Bay.  It  was  the  third 
attempt  which  had  been  made  to  discover  and  rescue 
them,  Dy  the  crew  on  board  the  ship.  The  joy  of 
Captain  Kennedy  and  his  men  at  this  sudden  deliv- 
erance may  readily  be  imagined.  They  were  thus 
snatched  most  probably  from  the  jaws  of  a  frozen  and 
mysterious  grave  which  would  soon  have  closed  over 
them. 

Five  weeks  had  elapsed  during  their  involuntary 
absence  from  the  ship,  and  they  seemed  to  possess 
the  magnitude  of  years  to  the  despairing  wanderers. 
So  far  distant  were  they  from  the  vessel,  that  it  re- 

Suired  a  journey  of  several  days  to  conduct  them 
lither.  The  company  then  prepared  to  pass  the  win- 
ter in  their  present  situation.  The  deck  was  cleared 
of  lumber  and  covered  with  a  housing.  They  then 
built  out-houses  of  snow  for  various  purposes,  for 
wash  houses,  for  a  carpenter  shop,  and  for  forges. 
All  the  powder  on  board  was  takj^n  on  shore  and 
buried  in  the  snow.  The  winter  was  to  be  passed  iu 
making  extensive  land  journeys  in  all  directions,  in 
search  of  Sir  John  Franklin.  They  prepared  a  quan- 
tity of  snow-shoes  and  winter  clothing.  As  soon  as 
the  ice  in  Prince  Regent's  Inlet  permitted  them  to 
travel  from  the  ships  with  safety,  they  commenced 
their  explorations. 

The  first  object  of  inquiry  was  to  ascertain  whether 
Fury  Beach  had  been  a  point  of  refuge  to  any  of  Sir 
John  Franklin's  company,  since  it  was  visited  by 
Lieutenant  Kobinson  m  1849.  It  was  also  desirable 
to  form  a  depot  of  provisions  there,  to  aid  in  future 
researches  which  might  be  made  in  the  same  direc- 
tion. They  followed  the  base  of  the  lofty  clifi's  which 
extend  in  an  almost  continuous  line  from  Batty  Bay 
to  Fury  Beach.  The  company  consisted  of  five  per- 
sons including  Captain  Kennedy.    They  dragged  a 


OAPTAm  KESmSDYB  TOTAGE. 


467 


Bleigii  wi^  them,  which  wa«  no  easy  task,  as  the 
gronnd  was  covered  the  entire  way  with  houlders 
and  larijo  fmgments  of  ice,  which  had  been  stranded 
on  tile  Deach  by  many  successive  tempests.  Theie 
were  also  immense  sloping  embankments  of  drifted 
snow,  which  lay  high  up  against  the  fa^e  of  the  cliffy. 
Their  entire  journey  was  performed  by  moonlight, 
the  sun  having  entirely  bidden  them  farewell  before 
their  departure  from  the  ship. 

Sir  John  Koss  had  erected  in  1832  at  Fury  Belich, 
a  building  which  he  had  named  Somerset  House. 
Many  hopes  centered  around  this  spot,  because  it  was 
reasonably  supposed  that  if  any  of  Franklin's  party 
had  been  imprisoned  in  the  Arctic  seas,  and  had  ever 
come  near  to  Fury  Beach,  they  would  have  repaired 
to  this  well  known  spot,  both  for  shelter  and  previa-* 
'ons.  As  soon  ad  Captain  Kennedy  reached  this 
house  on  January  8th,  he  discovered  that  all  his  hopes 
had  been  illusions.  A  death-like  solitude  pervaded 
the  moon-lit  and  frozen  gloom  around  them.  The 
eye  rested  on  a  surrounding  waste,  relieved  by  no 
sign  of  recent  life,  cheered  by  no  evidence  of  the  for- 
mer presence  of  those  whom  they  sought.  The  stores 
which  had  there  been  placed  were  still  in  perfect 
preservation.  The  house  itself  had  become  much  di* 
lapidated  by  the  severity  of  the  climate,  and  by  the 
rude  saliites  of  those  Arctic  storms.  Thf^  roof  was 
much  broken.  The  inder-staif  bad  bjon  tbrown 
down  by  the  winds,  and  had  been  fjaawed  by  the 
famished  foxes.  One  end  of  the  buiiQ^rig  was  filled 
with  snow.  They  lighted  a  fire  in  'lie  otove  .fhich 
Sir  John  Ross  had  once  used,  and  pr  jpared  their  sup- 
per. After  spending  a  few  hours  in  the  careful  ex- 
amination of  that  dreary  spot,  rendered  still  more  mel- 
ancholy by  the  lunar  gloom  and  the  disappoiatment 
of  all  their  hopes,  Captain  Kennedy  and  his  men 
returned  after  a  journey  of  several  days  to  the  i^hi|lt»- 
No  traces  of  the  lost  navigators  had  been  seen  dur'ng 
this  vidit  to  Fury  Beach.    The  state  of  the  weather 


w  n 


468 


F&OOSiildS  OF  AUOTIO  DIi€OV£BY. 


m 


during  the  ensuing  month,  compelled  Captain  Ken- 
nedy to  remain  in  his  vebsel.  There  they  wei?e  nearly 
overwhelmed  by  avalanches  of  snow.  There  seemed 
to  be  but  one  gale  during  the  winter  arouad  the  ship ; 
but  that  gale  blew  whcTi  she  came,  and  continued  tili 
she  departed.  It  was  dangerous  to  venture  forth  even 
for  a  short  distance;  inasmuch  as  the  snow- drifts  and 
^he  darkness  combined,  soon  involved  the  traveler  in 
a  whirling  deluge  which  rendered  it  impossible  to  see 
six  paces  off. 

A  small  party  were  actually  lost  for  a  short  time, 
when  endeavoring  to  convey  some  provisions  a  short 
distance  from  the  ship  to  form  a  depot.  After  pro- 
ceeding a  few  hours,  a  furious  hurricane  arose,  which 
drifted  the  sno\»-  in  fearful  masses  around  them.  In 
attempting  to  cross  a  bay  on  their  return,  they  lost 
sight  of  the  land  by  which  their  course  was  to  le 
guided.  Neither  sun,  moon,  or  stars  illumined  the 
heavens.  They  knew  not  which  way  to  turn.  They 
tried  the  expedient  of  setting  the  dogs  loose  whicn 
drew  the  sledge.  They  all  started  off  at  a  rapid  pace, 
and  afterward  I'eachea  the  ship ;  but  their  gait  was 
too  rapid  for  the  men,  whom  they  soon  left  behind  to 
their  fate.  They  still  went  on  however,  sometimes 
walking,  sometimes  crawling,  sometimes  climbing 
over  the  immense  blocks  and  masses  of  ice  and  snow 
drifts.  At  length  they  reached  the  powder  magazine, 
and  after  some  further  difi^culty,  they  found  the  ship. 
Their  escape  was  accidental;  for  the  men  had  be- 
came so  benumbed  with  cold,  as  to  be  able  no  longer 
to  clear  their  eyelids  of  the  accumulation  of  snow 

which  had  rested  on  them,  and  were  thus  nearly  blind. 

Thus  February  wore  away,  and  Captain  Kennedy 

began  to  prepare  for  the  execution  of  the  chief  land 

idurney  which  had  been  contemplated  bytheexpe- 
aitlon.  The  end  of  this  journey  was  Cape  Walker ; 
fbr  it  was  supposed  that  if  Sir  John  Franklin  had 
token  his  departure  for  the  unknown  regions  to  the 


^o:^i»-- 


.fi 


ir. 


♦ 


CAPTAIN  &&2INKDY  8  VOYAGE,, 


469 


west  and  south-west,  he  would  have  started  from  this 
point,  and  not  from  Wellington  Channel. 

Five  men  accompanied  Captain  Kennedy  on  this 
excursion.  As  far  as  Fury  Beach  they  were  accom- 
panied by  seven  persons  as  a  fatigue  party.  Their 
provisions,  clothing,  an d_  bedding  were  drawn  on  two 
Indian  sleighs  b}'  five  dogs.  They  started  on  the  25th 
of  February,  and  were  accompanied  by  the  whole 
crew  as  far  as  Batty  Bay.  On  the  5th  of  March 
Captain  Kennedy  reached  Fury  Beach.  Here  they 
remained  several  days,  and  found  the  old  stores  do- 
posited  here  by  Sir  J  ohn  Koss,  not  only  in  a  state  of 
good  preservation,  but  also  much  suoerior  in  quality 
to  those  which  they  brought  with  them.  These  pro- 
visions consisted  of  preserved  meats,  vegetables,  and 
sonps,  and  after  thirty  years'  exposure  to  the  intense 
climate  of  the  Arctic  zone,  they  were  found  to  be  still 
perfect!  The  flour  had  all  become  caked  in  solid 
lumps,  and  had  to  be  reground  and  passed  through  a 
seive  before  it  could  be  used ;  but  then  it  furnished 
most  excellent  biscuit. 

On  the  29tli  of  March  Captain  Kennedy  resumed 
his  march  from  Fury  Beach.  He  had  four  flat-bot- 
tomed Indian  sleighs,  drawn  by  the  dogs  and  men. 
They  proceeded  i jward  Cape  Garry  over  a  long  route 
of  noes  and  low-lying  points.  They  uniformly  com- 
menced their  journey  immediately  after  breakfast, 
and  continued  till  evening,  when  a  snow  hut  was 
greeted,  and  preparations  made  to  pass  the  night  in 
it.  Their  labors  were  rarely  over  and  repose  begun, 
before  ten  o'clock  at  night. 

On  the  1st  of  April  they  reached  Creswell  Bay, 
and  in  the  evening  came  to  Cape  Garry.  They 
thence  proceeded  onward  to  Brentford  Bay,  where 
they  found  a  dozen  Esquimaux  huts,  deserted  by  their 
inhabitants.  Here  the  party  divided  for  the  purpose 
of  exploring  several  channels  of  open  water  which 
extended  toward  the  interior.  Captain  Kennedy 
traveled  twenty  miles  along  one  o^^Jij^fi©  phanneJs, 


W 


n 


\\ 


470 


PBOGBESS  or  ASUrtXj  DI800VEBT. 


From  afcill  on  whicli  he  here  encamped  he  saw  a 
broad  channel  running  north-east,  which'  he  at  first 
supposed  to  be  a  continuation  of  Brentford  Bay.  Its 
great  extent  however,  convinced  him  that  it  was  a 
western  sea,  and  that  the  narrow  passage  through 
which  he  had  just  traveled  was  a  strait  leading  out 
of  Prince  Kegent's  Inlet.  This  being  apparently  a 
new  discovery,  Captain  Kennedy  called  it  Bellot 
Strait,  after  the  second  officer  of  the  expedition.  This 
water  was  afterward  discovered  to  be  the  northern 
extremity  of  Victoria  Strait,  which  Dr.  Rae  had  ex 
plored  from  another  direction. 

At  this  point  Captain  Kennedy  determined  to  pro- 
ceed in  a  westward  direction,  in  order  to  ascertain 
whether  any  channel  existed  there  tliioiigh  which 
Sir  John  Franklin  might  have  penetrated  from  Cape 
Walker. 

'  On  the  8th  of  April  he  started  in  pursuance  of 
this  purpose.  Their  progress  was  slow  in  consequence 
jf  the  i*oughness  of  tne  ice.  The  men  became  much 
afflicted  with  snow-blindac^s,  and  were  much  dis- 
tressed by  the  sharp  particles  of  snow  drift  which 
were  dashed  by  the  furious  wind  into  their  eyes.  The 
wide  region  around  them  was  perfectly  level,  and 
Captain  Kennedy  named  it  Arrow  Smith's  Plains. 
Sometimes  the  severity  of  the  weather  compelled 
them  to  remain  for  several  days  in  tlieir  snow-hut. 
They  traveled  on  for  thirteen  days  without  meeting 
any  indications  of  the  approaching  sea.  This  con- 
vinced Captain  Kennedy  that  there  was  no  passage 
by  water  to  the  south-west  of  Cape  Walker;  and  that 
due  north  was  now  the  most  desirable  course  to  be 
pursued. 

Following  this  rurj ;  .^e  he  traveled  in  that  direc- 
tion for  twenty  miies  over  a  leve!  plain.  On  the  24th 
of  April  they  arrived  at  the  bottom  of  a  deep  inlet, 
which  has  since  been  ascertained  to  be  the  Omma- 
aey  Bay  of  Captain  Austin's  expedition.  From  this 
point  they  steered  eastward,  in  order  t;  strike  the 


OAFFAni  KWmSXtTS  TOTAOB. 


471 


channel  Bupposed  to  be  to  the  eastward  of  Gape 
Bonny,  and  by  following  it  to  reach  Cape  Walker. 

After  three  days  they  came  to  Browne's  Bay.  At 
length  on  the  4th  of  May,  they  approached  the  bold 
hei^land  of  Oape  Walker,  for  the  attainment  of  whieh 
they  had  endured  so  much.  Here  they  confidently 
hoped  to  find  some  traces  of  Sir  John  ]^ranklin,  had 
he  followed  the  suggestions  contained  in  his  original 
instructions.  Captain  Kennedy  accordingly  searched 
every  spot  within  three  miles  on  both  sides  of  the 
oape.  They  followed  the  windings  of  the  rough  ice 
outside  th'e  beach.  They  examined  the  base  of  the 
lofty  diflfs  which  stretch  away  northward  from  the 
cape.  Kot  a  single  vestige  of  the  lost  navigator  could 
anywhere  be  discovered. 

Captain  Kennedy  now  determined  immediately  to 
return  to  the  ship.  He  pushed  directly  across  North 
Somerset  toward  Batty  Bay,  intending  to  follow  the 
joast  to  Whaler  Point.  This  route  was  double  the 
distance  of  the  one  already  followed;  but  it  was 
hoped  that  perhaps  it  might  lead  ta  some  desirable 
results.  On  the  hrst  day  they  encamped  about  mid- 
way between  Cape  Walker  and  Limestone  Island. 
They  passed  by  Cunningham  Inlet,  Cape  Gifford,  and 
Cape  Kennel.  At  Cape  McCiintock  they  found  the 
small  store  of  provisions  which  Sir  John  Ross  had 
left  there  in  1849.  On  the  15th  of  May  thev  reached 
Whaler  Point.  On  the  27th,  they  left  Whaler  Point, 
to  return  directly  to  the  Prince  Albert,  and  on  the 
30th  their  land  journey  ended  by  their  safe  arrival  at 
the  vessel. 

Various  preparations  for  their  departure  now  occu- 
pied the  attention  of  the  seamen.  On  the  2 1st  of  July, 
these  were  completed ;  but  they  found  it  impossible 
to  move  the  ship.  The  ice  had  congealed  firmly 
around  her.  The  only  possibility  of  releasing  her 
was  by  sawing  a  canal  through  the  ice  which  still  ob- 
structed the  bay.  After  the  hard  labor  of  a  week,  a 
canal  half  a  mile  in  length,  and  sufficiently  wid#  to 


"H- 


\  , 


472 


PROGRESS  OP  ARCTIC   DIS^OTERY. 


'»v# 


permit  the  vessel  to  pass  was  cut  through.  This  chan- 
nel was  then  cleared  of  the  ice  by  the  use  of  Cope- 
land's  blasting  cylinders. 

I  On  the  6tn  of  August  Captain  Kennedy  and  his 
crew  joyftilly  bade  farewell  to  Batty  Bay,  where  the 
Prince  Albert  had  remained  three  hundred  and 
thirty  days.  In  Elwin  Bay  they  were  detained  a 
whole  week  by  the  compact  masses  of  ice  which  still 
obstructed  the  sea.  On  the  17th,  the  ice  suddenly 
cleared  away,  and  they  then  steered  for  Beechey  Island. 
At  this  point  they  met  the  "  North  Star,"  from  Eng- 
land, commanded  by  Captain  Pullen,  which  had  been 
despatched  by  the  British  Admiralty,  to  pursue  the 
search  after  Sir  John  Franklin. 

Having  completed  the  object  of  the  expedition,  as 
far  as  had  been  in  his  power,  though  without  any 
very  satisfactory  results.  Captain  !^nnedy  on  the 
24th  of  August  bore  away  for  England,  leaving  the 
North  Star  preparing  to  winter  at  Beechey  Island,  and 
carrying  with  him  the  latest  dispatches  for  the  Ad- 
miralty from  Commander  Pullen.  He  wished  to 
touch  on  his  voyage  at  Navy  Board  Inlet,  hoping  to 
be  able  to  ascertain  the  state  of  the  stores  which  had 
been  placed  there.  Two  unsuccessful  attempts  to  ac- 
complish this  purpose  were  defeated,  and  Captain 
Kennedy  was  then  compelled  by  stress  of  weather,  to 
relinquish  that  design.  On  the  21st  of  September 
the  Prince  Albert  reached  Cape  Farewell ;  and  on 
the  7th  of  October,  she  anchored  In  Aberdeen  Har- 
bor. Six  weeks  had  elapsed  since  the  commence- 
ment of  her  homeward-bound  voyage.  The  entire 
expedition  had  occupied  the  period  altogether  of  fif- 
teen months.  During  their  winter  stay  at  Whaler 
Point,  many  of  the  men  had  traveled  two  thousand 
miles  in  excursions  in  various  directions.  The  expe- 
dition settled  the  point,  that  Sir  John  Franklin  could 
not  have  advanced  by  Cape  Walker,  but  had  taken  the 
northern  route  through  Queen  Channel  and  Penny 
Strait ;  and  that  traces  of  his  fate  could  alone  be 


r 


f^ 


m 


llg: 


.t 


DB.  XANE's  EZPEDmON.  ^ 


478 


found  from  the  westward  or  Bebring's  Straits.  Yet 
there  too,  other  researches,  eaually  sagacious,  perM- 
verin^  and  thorough,  have  all  unfortunately  proved 
equaujr  unsuccessfult 

Abotio  Explorations:  the  secosd  Obibnbll  Ezpk- 

^   DmON  IN  SEAKCH  OP  SiB  JoHN  FbANKLIN  IN  1858,  '54, 

"  '66,  BY  Db.  E.  K.  Kane,  in  tub  Bbig  "  Advamob." 

In  December,  1862,  Dr.  Kano  re  -ed  bis  orders 
from  the  Navy  Department  at  W  uiiirton,  to  con- 
duct an  expedition  into  the  Arct'  -'  as  in  search 
of  the  great  English  navigator,    lli  ''Advance," 

in  which  ho  bad  formerly  sailed,  wus  placed  under 
bis  command.  He  immediately  proceeded  to  select 
"^1118  crew,  to  equip  the  vessel,  and  to  make  the  other 
preparations  which  were  necessary.  His  party  num- 
Dered  seventeen  picked  men,  all  of  whom  had  volun- 
teered to  try  with  him  the  perilous  vicissitudes  of 
bis  daring  venture.  The  brig  sailed  from  the  port 
of  New  York,  on  the  30th  of  May,  1853;  and  in 
eighteen  days  arrived  at  St.  Johns,  New  Foundland. 
Alter  providing  themselves  at  this  place  with  an  ad- 
ditional stock  of  fresh  meat,  and  a  valuable  team  of 
Newfoundland  dogs,  they  steered  for  the  coast  of 
Greenland. 

, ,  The  avowed  purpose  of  this  second  Arctic  journey 
6f  Dr.  Kime  was,  to  explore  what  he  believed  to  be 
the  probable  extension  of  the  northern  promontory  of 
the  peninsula  of  Greenland.  He  also  thought  that 
the  extreme  northern  headland  of  this  frozen  region 
undoubtedly  contained  and  would  exhibit  traces  of 
the  lost  navigators.  He  supposed  that  the  chain  of 
the  great  lan£masses  of  Greenland  might  extend  very 
far  toward  the  North  Pole ;  that  Sir  John  Franklin 
might  also  have  been  attracted  by  this  theory,  and 
might  have  purBued  this  route;  and  that  by  a 
thorough  searcn  in  that  direction,  the  utmost  limits 
of  Whi^  had  not  yet  been  invaded  or  explored  by  his 


•  Wa 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


•0= 

u 


2.5 
2.2 


■UUU 


1-25      1.4   III  1.6 

■a 6"    

► 

» 


VQ 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


? 


N. 


4; 


#5^ 


6^ 


r^ 


•m 


^ 


pBocufflRSFiBbno  iftsoovEET. 


IWld  and  ftdvenfnroirs  predecessots,  som^  light  mfdlit 
iW«  dnly  be  obtained  to  solve  the  gteat  pnispma  which 
1^  ebgroBsed  the  wondei^  of  men,  but  al$0  new  and 
independent  discoveries  might  be  made  In  that  un- 
known region. 

On  the  1st  of  July  Br.  Kane  entered  the  harbor 
of  FJskernoee,  one  of  the  Baliish  settlements  of  0reen- 
laad.  This  obsomre  and  kmely  commnnit^  is  Bnp- 
ported  by  their  trade  in  codfish.  The  Strang^  were 
Sieedived  with  simple  hfdspitality  py  M n  Lazzen,  tiie 
g&perintendent  of  the  colony.  6ome  fte^h.  provisions 
wete  here  also  obtained^  and  an  Esqttimaxtsthtmter  of 
B(ip^ri<)r  skill  was  enlisted  in  the  service  of  theparty. 

fVoeeeding  on  from  this  |)ioint,  the .  other  Danish 
iefttlements  of  Greenland  were  sticcessively  Visit^d-n, 
li^htenfels^'Snkkertdppen,  Proven,  Upernavick;  at'the 
lest  of  wMeh  place»the  first  Grinnell  ex]bedition  of 
1831  had  rested  a^er  its  winter  ^lift    At  length  they 
reached  Totlik,  the  most  northern  pdint  in  Gteenland 
inhabited  by  hnnian  beings.    Beyond  this  the  coast 
mkf  be  regarded  as  having  been  nntil  that  period, 
nnes^ldred.    From  Ydtlik,  jDr.  Kaile  stiQi^red  north- 
ward liowafd  Baffin's  Makids,  which  he  fouiid  then 
cleAi*  of  ice Vand  passing  by  I)tick  Island,  bore  &wsi,y 
for  Wil^or  JPoint.    As  no,  approached  Melville  Bay 
he  was  enveloped  in  a  thick  fog,  daring  the  preva- 
lisn^i^  of  whii0h  he  drifted  among  the  icebprgs.^    Af- 
ter a  hard  day's  work  With  the  boats^  th^^W^d  the 
brig  away  fi'om  these   nnpleasant  and  dangerous 
neighborsw    He  then  detennined  to  stand  wiestwaird, 
and  doable  Melville  Bay  by  an  ontside  pasisage,  tin- 
less  prevented  and  intercepted  by  the  pack.  '  In  exe- 
cuting this-  |mrpe$&  he'  concluded,  in  order  to  avoid 
the  drillang  floes,  to  anehoi:  to  an  ict^be^jfr  Eight 
hours  we^e  speiift  in  the  severe  labor  of  isr^rjllm^,  heav- 
ing, and  planting  the  anchors.;  'Btif  Scafcelyhad  this 
task  b€fen  finished,  wheni^  aHftetttioi  of  th6  crew  was 
mUtractedby  a  lotrd^^raddijig  sdtihd  t^bft    Sm^l  frag- 
ments of  ice  began  ^to  d^fst^oflft!.    The  ship  becA^e  in 


.#'' 


^^    DB.  kane'b  SxpKDirioiJ:'^*'*^ 


m 


;»► 


imutoent  peril  fW>m  theMIIn£fra«>e#^-tlie'# 
idiTing  mountain.    Sc&rcefy  mid  3^  ca^  hfl  ^jd 
tiie  ice-^erg,  when  l^e  face  of  it  descended  in  fbf 
upon  -  the  sea)  crashing  and  roaiing  Witli  a  tfaiUiC 
not  unMke  that  of  artillery. 
/  On  the  5th  of  An^stthej' passed  th<i.<* Crimson 
(ME^*^  so  CiBlled,f^ni  the  appearaniie  nsttally  pre? 
sented  h^  ^eir  snow-dad'  summits.    Ke±t  '^J*  they 
reached  Haklnyt  Island;  which  is  snnnon^te.a  t>j  a 
tdl  spife  springing  six  hiindred  f^t  into  the  )i|ayeQ# 
*hOT«e  the  l«it>el  of tiie  water.    They  sooh  "pii^^pn^pes 
i^lexilider  and  Isabella/  and  iJius  entered  ;&mta'a 
Sounds    Haviiig  reached  Littleton  l^iiiidflDr.  l^i 
d«leraiilied  to  Beji^it  here  a  snpply  df  myiplor 
and  some  permanent  traces  of  hi^  toi^^'p  1br 
in  '^dMie  it  shonld  he  necessai^  aft^iyat'j|^ M 
exploring  party  to  discover  the  fate  of  j^lf  %^h.  *  the 
lire^beiflkt  was  aeeordingly  haried  hef e,  containing  a 
sappiy  of  pemmiteaii^  blanketEJ,  and  tudia  ititiher  cloth. 
1?hey  «ifideaYored  to  fortify  the  precious  40i)o«it  from 
the  4ka,vn  (H  the  Polar  be^.    And  &W  <^  this  lone- 
J?  4pat^  the  party  w'ere  stirprised  td  nn4  the  ty^oes  of 
lis^ii^^aiinx  life;    Th^iriiin^  of  stdn^  Hots,  and  even 
the  fki;sen  eorpdes  of  the  dead  were  discovered;  and 
so-singolar  had  be«li  the  action  of  the  intense  cold 
ttpon  &e  dead  bodies,  1^'  ihongh  they  had'probab]iy 
ooonpied  their  cheert^si  home^  for  ^  p^%\ity0xej 
wer9  stUl  not  decompoBed.        '    ^'>  >       -  •- 
•  The  301ih  of  Angnst  >till  found  i£e  brig  and  her 
gallant  creiw  navigiiting  t)te  dan^r^us  ^p^  ix^QAar 
denedwateiiSof8nuth'sB<ytiii<i.    ::^^  wetheyen- 
eonntered  tt  storm  <>f  exti^tdlii^  w^    and  in^e 
(me  of  those  narr<y^  escapes  Mis'  aestrletipQ,  which 
Bometil&ies  give  an  air  mioife  df  i'oinanQe'tlian  of  reali* 
ty  to  the  adv^nfiiresr  of  Arctic  ^kptpreri).   in  a  ternfio 
gale^heir  thr^e  hafwsers  we^  bi^ol^eii,  land  the  brig 
drilitfed  with  fsarfiil  rapidity  imd^  the  fanonS  ^es^- 
nre  v€  the  storm;    Omy  by  the  ntmoAtli^lroiBm  iu^ 
ikill-wM  the  Adyan^ktxpr  fifoni  being  ""dashect  to 

80  T» 


A*^, 


1-1 


^m 


476 


PBOOBIBS  OF  4AOTIO  DI8C0YBBY. 


W'       f 


pieces  againBt  the  mountains  of  ioe  which  tossed^ 
roUedi  and  snrged  aroand  her  in  the  deep«.  The 
greatest  danger  of  all  was  afUr  the  storm  had  partly 
Inlled,  when  tlie  bergs  continued  to  thump  against 
the  floe-ice;  and  the  certainty  of  being  croahed  be- 
tween the  two,  stared  the  voyagers  in  the  face.  A 
sudden  means  of  escape  presented  itself,  and  with  ad< 
mirable  dexterity  and  promptitude  the  crew  availed 
themselves  of  it^  A  low,  water-washed  bcfg  at  that 
momejpl  came  driving  along  past  the  Advance.  An 
anchor  %aa  instantly  planted  m  its  side  and  held  fast 
by  a  wha^e  line.  Carried  along  with  fearfnl  rapidi- 
"]r  by  this  gigrantic  tow-horse,  the  little  brig  was 
rifted  out  of  danger,  and  once  more  escaped  the  im- 
endi|ig  i^^il|k^  6he  had  a  close  shave  of  it  neverthe- 
ete,  and  #|ipift  have  lost  her  port  quarter-boat  h^ 
it  not  lK^%iken  in  from  the  davits*  v 

The  tiayigators  continued  their  northern  roiite  by 
trackhig  4i$ong  the  ice-belt  which  hugs  Uie  frozen 
shore.  On  the  ^^d  of  August  they  had  reached  78° 
41' north  latitude.  This  placed  them  further  north 
thian  any  or  their  predecessors  had  b^n,  except  Cap- 
tain Furry.  Puring  the  progress  of  the  journey,  the  ■ 
whole  coast  had  been  inspected  c^fuily;  yet  no 
traces  of  Sir  tTohn  {"ranklin  had  beeQ  aiscoverea«  On 
the  28th  of  August  Dr.  Kane  determined  to  send  out 
an  expedition  from  the  vesself  to  make  further  search,  t 
as  toe  condition  of  the  ice  prevented  the  Advance 
from  being  brought  near  to  the  shore.  The  whale- 
boat  was  chosen  ibr  this  adventure. .  They  took  with 
them  a  sledge  and  a  supi^jr  p^  pemmican,  The  par? 
ty  consisted  of  seven  persoiijp  selected  £rom  the  crew. 
The  vessel  i^l^  {^^^  under  the.teniporar7  control 
of  Mr.  Ohkfli.  The  ^venturers  were  provided  with 
buffalo  robes,  and  otn^r  necessary  n^ean^  of  proteo* 
tion  against  the  extrenie  col(l.  ijheir  progress  how- 
ever was  slow,  not  making  more  than  seven  miles  per 
day,  in  consequence  of  wa  obstructions  of  the  ice 
i^on^  the  shore.    Tery  soon  they  were  compelled  t» 


I 


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wv>^     '  •   •*   \    '•v.?„i*  j^nP'  f- 


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T^^ 


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mai 


ikt 


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COf 

Ave 


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f:>!' 


.t. 


vtumAxntawLnDmcm,   ** 


m 


ilmBdon  ibo  bofti,  ftnd  empio/  their  Ae^g^,  l!B<e  ifb- 
xnpi  Batate  of  tlra  gftmnd  OTer  which  tSe^  trkyi^led 
maj  he  infenred  from  the  fact,  <hM  fl^quentij^e^ 
were  coBrtm^d  to  earry  the  t^&A^  6^  their  shM- 
ders  erer  precipices  knd  gorge*  in  the  ice,  and  over 
ha^  mid  perpendienkr  knolle  <^  ihow. ' 
aoln  thie  trip  tiie  travelers  found  many  sftChltons  of 
the  reindeer.  Dr.  Kane  aseerUdnedby  scientific  oV 
levraftion,  that  the  mean  elevafldii  of  thispait  of  ttie 
coast  of  Greenland  was  thirteen  Ittitid^dd  fecft.  After 
liverdays'  laborious  travel,  he  was^t  fottr  MleB  dif- 
tanitiiom  th«  brig.  Hoi^  he  determined  tdli^aye  t&e 
sledget  behind  and  prcceed  on  f<Hit.  On  ^tHe  lib  of 
depteBib«r-theT  discovered  i  b#  msch  Ikr^^^r-^iAn 
iii^x«tlber  p'cevionsly  known  to  extiend  fi^iitl3Mth% 
Strait^  it  was  fed  by  a  lafge  rirer  whf (^  potiied  a 
.flckod  of  tnmnltnons  waters  into  it  fV6m  thellitetto 
ojf  N(»th  Greenland.  It  Was  ftilly  three  qinart^  6f 
«  mila  wide  at  its  mouth.  Thi^  gallant  najrlgiltbiB 
favftdt  thefnaiiie  of  MaryHitttiirft  TtXveki'i^'fkp 
mt&i  of  Hnk  H;  Grinnell.  ^  ThisTiver  wa^  tijiced'm 
ibrty  miles  towiard  its  inonth ;  and  its  origin  ¥aS  fbutd 
tor^  d^ved'  &(»ii  the  melting  snows  of  th6  interior 
^aciers..;^J^i^-i^  ■  ■  '"*'*!'^ 

0  From'his  researches  in  this  region,  Dr.  S[ane  came 
Ibo^jtibe  eonclttsioii  that  %h!s  coast  of  Greenland  faced 
totibkenortili  His  longitude  h^rewas  78^  41''we8t 
After  fixteen  mifles  m  fotk  journey  the  cpm^aXiy 
r^KShed  a  greiit  headland  to  which  they  gate  tile 
mifaet  of  ^'hac^eray.  P^ht  m3es  f^iirtljii*  ein.> 
simUar  eQy:&etiee  attracted  tneiraitteti^on^  lb  which 
they  applied  t^epithetof  Hawltes.  The table-Iahdd 
here  were  tweli^e&andred  feet  high.  The  psuty  coii- 
tinuedtiieir  diffionlt^imddangei'ous  Journey  U^td'the^ 
reached  some  lofty  headlands,  where  they'determfhbd 
to  terminate  their  escmfsion;  These  teached  ati  alti- 
tude of  eleven  hundred  feet,  ai^  overiooked  aii  ^Xt 
panse  extending^  beyond  the  eighteen^  pari^l  of 
latitude.    The  View  Irom  tifii  dt^fatioirwiuf  MiPkief 


^8 


PBOQWBM  Qf  ABCnO  OnOOTERY. 


.Iby  erery  element  of  ffloomj  end  ebeerkin  nufnifl- 
rcence.    Oxt  the  1^  tne  weatern  shove  of  the  sonnd 
AtFetched  away  toward  the  northern  pole.    To  tiie 
right  a  ruffgoa  and  rolling  country  appeared,  which 
fnded  in  ue  Great  Humboldt  Glacier.    XowMrd  the 
north-east  the  projecting  headland  called  Gape  An- 
drew Jackson,  ap]3eared  r  and  the  vast  area  between 
.was  a  sea  of  solid  ice.    Farther  still,  a  stream  of  ice- 
^  v1t>erg8  presented  their  rugged  and  unseemly  bulks  to 
ihe  eye  of  the  observer. 

Having  carefully  examined  the  whole  country  as 
fu  as  his  glasses  would  reac^  Dr.  Kane  determmed 
to  return  to  the  Advance.  Winter  was  now  rapidly 
approaching,  and  it  was  necessary  to  select  some  ap- 
propriate spot  in  which  the  crew  andthe'vessel  sught 
pass  its  long,  gloomy,  and  dangerous  interval,  fior 
various  reasons  which  need  not  here  be  detailed,  Dr. 
Kane  resolved  to  remain  where  he.  then  was.  He 
had  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  Bensselaer  Harbor 
would  be  the  most  desirable  winter  quarters;  and  on 
the  10th  of  September  they  commenced  the  labors 
necessary  to  render  their  position  tenable  and  safe. 
They  removed  the  contents  of  the  hold  of  the  vessel 
to  a  store-house  which  they  prepared  on  Butter  Island. 
A  deck-house  was  built  on  the  vessel,  in  which  the 
diiferent  qualities  of  ventilation,  warmth,  dryness, 
room*  and  comfort,  were  sought  to  the  utmost  possi* 
ble  extent.  A  site  for  the  observatory  was  selected. 
Stones  were  hauled  over  the  ice  on  sleages  tor  its  erec- 
tion. Its  location  was  on  a  rocky  inlet  about  a  hun- 
dred yards  from  the  vessel,  which  they  named  Fern 
Bock.  Preparations  were  also  made,  preparatory  to 
the  work  of  establishing  provision  depots  on  the  coast 
of  Greenland*  ^9  advantage  of  these  provision  de* 
poti^  will  fq>pear  ftom  the  £ftct  that  by  their  ase^^»nee^ 
expeditions  of  search  could  afterward  be  conducted 
with  the  use  of  sledges  and  dogs.  7h9  provisions  tor 
the  l^^r,^,if  taken  on  the  journeyii  themselves,  form 
9^  iieavy  a  load  |%  s^^i^y  $o  embarraii  the  move 


*1 


.T» 


mu  XAVM  iifiDifioimM 


(^9 


moots  of  the  tmvelersw  But  wbeii  they  were  rekaeed 
froni  this  labor,  these  dogs  eonveyed  the  sledcee  «id 
their  occupants  on  long  journeys  sucoessAiuyy  and 
with  great  rapidity  on  their  tours  of  e;utmin«tioiir 

On  the  20th  ef  September  the  first  party  orgaiUsed 
to  establish  provision  depots  was  sent  out.  Ik  oonsisit- 
ed  of  seven  men.  A  sledge  thirteen  feetinleagl^ 
called  the  *'  Faith,"  was  fiUed  with  peromiilui,  ana 
was  drawn  by  those  attached  to  it,  by  means  of  tiaek- 
ropes  termed  rne-raddies,  which  were  passed  around 
the  shoulder  and  under  the  arms.  Hie  intended  lo- 
cation of  this  depot  was  sixty  miles  from  the  brig,  on 
the  Greenland  coast.  As  the  bold  and  hardy  adven* 
turers  started  forth,  they  were  saluted  with  three 
hearty  cheers  by  their  comrades  who  remained  with 
the  vessel. 

^  l!he  life  of  the  part^  which  remained  in  the  vessel 
was  not  devoid  ot  incident  and  interest.  They  made 
a  desperate  attempt  to  smoke  out  the  rats  with  which 
they  were  infested.  To  accomplish  this  purpose,  a 
(quantity  of  charcoal  was  burnt,  after  the  hatches  had 
been  shut  downj  and  ev%ry  visible  crevice  had  been 
stopped.  A  large  quantity  of  carbonic  acid  gas  was 
theh  generated,  and  the  crew  spent  one  night  on  deck 
in  order  to  giye  the  rats  fair  plajr.  One  or  two  of  the 
seamen  made  a  nan'ow  escape  from  suffocation,  by 
venturing  during  the  night  into  the  fumigated  por- 
tion of  the  ship.  They  were  also  assailed  by  another 
peril.  A  barrel  of  charcoal  by  some  means  became 
Ignited,  which  had  been  left  in  the  carpenter's  room 
at  some  distance  from  the  stoye.  After  soine  .labor 
and  more  anxiety,  the  fire  was>  suppressed  before  any 
very  serious  damage  had  been  done  to  the  vesseL  The 
corpses  of  twenty-eight  defunct  rats,  of  all  uzes,  ages, 
and  sexes,  became  the  ne^  day  the  trophies  of  the 
successful  attack  of  the  crew  upon  their  foes* 

By  tlie  lOtb  of  October  .the  paprty  which  had  been 
sent  to  establish  the  first  depot  of  provisions^  hail 
beenjbwnt  |wenjy J^u^ftnd JO^r  ^um  was 


m 


PBOft] 


(ff  ABOnO  OnOOTEFT* 


imitlj  expected.    Dr.  Ksne  at  lengtii  determined  to 
tteft  <mt  in  se«rch  of  them.    He  trareled  with  one 
oempMiion  on  a  sledge  drawn  by  four  Newfoundland 
doge.    Heaveraffed  twenty  miles  per  dajwith  this 
fingolar  team.    On  the  15th,  neveral  hours  oefore  sun- 
rim,  he  perceived  on  the  distant  and  snowy  waste,  a 
4aHi:  objeot  which  seemed  to  move.    It  proved  to  be 
the  Tedkming  depot-party.    They  had  traveled  at  the 
rate  of  eighteen  miles  per  day,  and  had  been  twenty- 
eight  days  engaged  in  their  laborious  expedition. 
Soui%  of  &eir  limbs  had  been  frozen,  and  th^y  had  met 
with  other  mishaps,  though  none  were  of  a  very  seri- 
OQS  nature,  and  they  had  accomplished  the  pnrpose 
for  which  they  had  been  sent  out.    The  greeting 
which  ensued  on  their  return  to  the  i^bip,  vtBB  hearty 
on  both  sides.    They  had  made  the  first  deposit  of 
provision  at  Cape  Russell.    Thirty  miles  further  on, 
they  left  about  a  hundred  and  ten  pounds  of  pemmi- 
can  and  beef,  about  thirty  pounds  of  a  mixture  of 
pemmican  and  meal,  ana  a  bag  of  bread.    On  the 
10th  of  October  they  made  their  third  and  last  de- 
posit  on  an  island  called  James  McGary,  after  the 
second  officer  of  the  expedition.    Here  they  erected 
a  cairn,  and  buried  six  nundred  and  seventy  pounds 
of  pemmican,  and  forty  of  meat,  biscuit,  with  other 
items,  making  in  all  eisht  hundred  pounds.    One  in- 
cident which  occurred  during  their  journey,  illustrates 
very  clearly  some  of  the  perils  which  attend  Arctic 
travel.    The  company  had  pitched  their  tent  for  the 
night  and  had  retired  to  rest.     It  was  about  mid- 
night   They  had  been  lulled  to  slumber  by  the  grand 
monotonous  thundering  of  the  neighboring  glaciers. 
Snddenly  the  Hoe  on  which  the  tent  was  placed, 
cmcked  with'  a  stupendous  report  directly  beneath 
them.    The  sleeping  party  needed  no  farther  prompt- 
ings to  bestir  themselves.    Repeated  reports  ftround 
them  gave  evidence  that  the  ice  was  breaking  up. 
The  riedge  was  immediately  placed  upon  a  detached 
piece  of  ice,  and  rowed  and  paddled  to  one  of  the 


*^TttL  xInS^  ilFUlfflOk. 


481 


ffrbfc^'iftUg  i^Ueli  romidtied  attached  to  tile  b^irjgg. 
.Hei^  lAier  obtained  safety  tintil  the  mornhig,  when 
th^BV  ^uicKly  removed  from  their  dangerous  poiltioiL 
They  eventually  returned  in  safety  to  the  bng. 
'  S^  the  7th  of  Kovember,  1858,  the  daHcness  of  an 
Ai^ic  winter  begbn  to  settle  down  npon  them.  It 
was  neeossanr  to  Keep  the  lamps  lit  constantly.  Hiey 
had  the  comfortable  prospect  of  ninety  days  of  dark- 
ness yet  to  come.  It  was  natural  that  the  lonely  ad- 
venturers should  begin  to  devise  Some  means  of 
amusement,  by  which  they  might  beguile  the  eheer> 
less  monotony  of  their  existence.  A  fancy  ball  was 
{iriDJected,  ana  an  Arctic  journal  bearing  the  appro- 
pHate  title  of  '^The  Ice  Blink/'  was  commenced. 
Thibs  the  slow  and  tedious  days  and  nif^hts  of  their 
Wniter  sojourn  wore  oni  In  spite  of  the  intense  cold, 
Dr.  Kane  continued  to  make  his  magnetic  observa>> 
tions  in  the  observatory.  When  the  thermometer 
stood  at  forty-nine  degrees  below  zero,  and  even  at 
sixty-four  degrees  below  zero,  he  still  effected  his  as- 
treuomical  investi^tions  and  calculations. 

On  the  2l8t  of  January  the  first  traces  of  the  ro- 
tfirnins  light  biecame  visible.  Its  approach  was  in- 
<fieatea  by  a  beauteous  orange  tint,  which  flushed  &e 
distaht  southern  horizon.  But  still,  the  darkness 
seemed  to  be  eternal  and  nn varying.  The  continued 
absence  of  light  appeared  to  anect  the  health  of  the 
jMk^rty,  as  much  as  the  excessive  rigor  of  the  coldl 
By  the  2lBt  of  February  the  sun's  rajs  became  clearly 
VtEiible,  and  when  March  arrived,  it  brought  with  it 
the  almost  perpetual  day  which  altemately  lakes  the 
pjaeein  the  Arctic  realms  of  almost  perpetual  night. 
During  the  winter,  nine  noble  Newfoundland,  and 
thirty-five  E8<^uimaux  dogs,  which  were  of  the  ut^ 
most  vaine,  had  perished.  Six  only  remained  out 
of  the  Whole  number  which  had  Been  taken  at  the 
eommencement  of  the  expedition;  and  these  were 
now  their  dnlr  reliance  in  their  future  operations. 

By  ttee  18tn  of  Mar(^  the  sprinj^  tides  began  t<t 


^  fBOQUMfiiPAWIlOnKOIfnT. 

bra«li  Mid  moTf^the  naiaiTQ  ioe  whioh  itUI  boimd  tlit 
Arotio  S«a.  Hia  ice  Gommaoced  to  grind  tud  cnuk  • 
the  water  to  daih  to  end  fro;  end  t£e  veettcl  to  rise 
and  def eend  in  a  renge  of  leTenteen  feet  per  da7. 
On  the  90tb  a  depot-piurt^  was  sent  out,  preparatory 
to  the  comnienceme9,t  of^the  operations  of  the  sam- 
mer  Those  who  remained  in  the  ship  commenced 
to  clean  it  to  take  down  the  forward  bulwarks  and  to 
elear  the  aecks.  Ihe  necessary  preparations  for  in- 
land trips  and^researehes  were  made ;  sledges  and 
acoootrements  were  contrived,  and  moccasins  were 
jb^ricated.  "While  these  labors  occupied  thoir  atten- 
tion,  a  portion  of  the  depot  party  suddenly  reap- 
peared at  the  yessel.  They  broug^ht  back  a  terrible 
report  They  had  left  four  of  their  number  lying  on 
the  ice  froaen  and  disabled,  and  they  had  returned  a 
great  distance  to  obtain  instant  relief.  ' 

J^Tot  a  moment  was  to  be  lost  Ohisen,  the  only 
one  of  the  returned  party  who  seemed  able  to  give 
any  information,  was  wrapped  up  in  bufGslo  robes  and 
placed  njpou  a  sledge.  If ine  men  started  put  to  the 
rescue.  The  cold  was  intense,  ranging  seventy-eight 
degrees  below  the  freezing  point  /Hie  instant  the 
partv, ceased  to  move  they  would  have  been  frozen  to 
aeauu  Violent  exercise  alone  kept  them  idive. 
When  ihey  ventured  to  apply  snow  to  their  lijps  to 
sliJce  their  thirst,  it  burnt  like  caustic,  and  blood  im- 
mediately followed.  Some  of  the  men  were  seized 
with  trembling  fits,  and  some  with  attacks  of  short 
breath.  Dr.  Sane  himself,  £sdnted  twice  upon  the 
snow  under  the  intense  cold. 

After  a  laborious  and  dangerous  journey  of  twenty-  - 
one  hours,  the  los^  party  were  discovered.  The^  were 
nearly  forty  np^ilea  distant  trom  the  brig.  Their  con« 
dition  was  perilous  in  the  extreme :  and  the  succor 
di4  i^t  come  a  moment  too  soon.  But  the  rescuers 
were  scarcely  better  off  Uian  the  rescued.  Tbey  were 
compell^  to  drag  a  loa^  of  nine  hundred  pounda 
upon  the  sledge  ^  and  during  their  return  trip^  the 


m^^mik'i  Mlmmieii*^ 


wtiple^pArtrwer^  In  frnmioeiit  dAHfier  of  Mug  ftt^imr 
t^  4wD.  Thfet  eduM  with  Ch«  titnoel<Mflmi%  Mtlii 
thi  dUrpdrition  to  8lee|),  wMth  wmiM  kif«  immtdiMi* 
\j  seit^cl  tiieir  fate.  After  a  fearftil  jmuni^^  of  tfr^ 
oi^t  wi  th^  pttrtj*  refined  tlie  brfr ;  bntth'e  ioffBr- 
ihijl^'dr  thftt  terriDii)  oeeasioii  wm  MiiMwt  bojood  th« 
pOtref  of  itoigiB^tion.  Thoj  had  tn^volod  abotl 
lilnot^  mites ;  and  most  of  the  men  ktd  booomo  Sobk'' 
poHray  deliriotis ;  nearlj  aH  were  fW>Mii  in  some 
uprtions  of  their  bodies ;  and  two  of  ^em  nl>tiini||^y 
okd  in  consequence  of  their  expoMnre. 

On  the  27th  of  April,  the  time  iiaTing«rrived  to  oOn* 
thiod  his  researches  both  after  Sir  Jolm  Franklin  and 
in  Arotic.dis^venr,  i>r.  Kane  determined  to  resnmtt 
his  Oxjpedition^.  He  reeoWed  now  to  follow  the  iee^ 
be^  to  the  Greiat  Olaeier  of  Hnmboldt,  and  thence  to 
strMch  alonff  the  face  of  the  glacier,  toward  the  west 
of  north,  and  make  an  attempt  to  cross  the  ice  to  the 
Ainerican  side  of  the  channel.  The  object  of  this 
bold  venture  was  to  attain  the  ntmost  limit  of  the 
shore  of  Greenland ;  to  measure  (^e  waste  which  ex- 
tended between  it  and  the  unknown  west ;  and  thus 
to  tertel,  if  possible,  some  of  the  mysteries  which 
surrounded  the  North  Pole.  The  Journey  was  imme- 
diatolv  commenced.  Afiker  many  adventures  and 
sufferinffs  which  we  will  not  describe,  the  Great  Gla- 
cier of  Humboldt  was  relKshed.  A  more  magniilceBt 
object  than  this  does  not  exist  on  the  globe.  It  pre<^ 
sents  a  shining  wall  of  ice  800  feet  in  height,  <h>wii* 
ittg  orer  the  m>zen  sea  below,  and  extends  nnbielBan 
for  sixty  iniles;  It  is  the  great  crystal  bHd|»  which 
has  for  ages  connected  togetJier  the  two  eontments  of 
Americti  and  Greenland,  and  it  extrude  ftom  the  sea 
towurd  the  interior,  through  vaist  and  unknown 
regions.  ^^ 

Dr.  Kane  now  deterniitied  to  organke  m  4miM# 
party,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  a  ektm^otaliy  > 
form  of  outlet  eodsted  to  this  nortiMmf  Sfrtwniwiiy'li^ 
the  coast  of  Greenland.    He  was  convinced  or  tha 


•1 


m-:-- 


■i 


PKOGipM  0»  ABCIIO  imaOY^Y, 


existence  of  Buch  a  channel  from  the  piovemenU  of 
the  ioe-bergt;  from  the  physical  dmraeier  of  the 
ti4es ;  as  well  as.from  certain  and  uniform,  analogies 
of  jphjsieal  geo^aphy. 

On  th^  8a  of  Jane  one  of  the  parties  of  explora- 
tion wt  out  from  the  brig,  l!liey  had  a  large  sledpe 
thirteen  feet  long*  They  aimed  directljr  for  the  gia- 
cier;barrier  ,on  the  Greenland  side.  Their  orders  were 
tp  iUteinpt  to  scale  the  ice  and  examine  the  Interior 
of  ||^  great  mer-de-glacet 

On  the  27th  (ff  June  one  of  the  parties,  directed  by 
McGarry  and  Bonsall,  returned  to  the  brig.  Several 
of  them  had  become  nearly  blind.  Alter  twelve 
days'  travel  they  had  reached  the  Great  Glacier. 
Thoy  found  the  depot  of  provisions,  which  had  been 
deposited  the  previous  season,  destroyed  by  the 
bears.  These  brutes  had  broken  open  the  tin  cases 
in  which  the  pemmican  )^  been  deposited.  An  al- 
cohol cask  strongly  bound  in  iron  was  dashed  into 
fragments ;  and  a  tin  liquor  can  was  mashed  and 
twisted  into  a  ball  This  party  of  explorers  had 
found  it  impossible  to  scale  the  Great  6lacier,  and 
returned  to  the  brig  withoi^^  having  efEect^^  f^JJ^, 
sttltfr  of  importance.  ,,    «:   «      ,  ,* 

The  other  party,  which  had  been  placed  under  the 

fuidance  of  Hr.  Morton,  lef^  the  vessel  on  the  4th  of 
une.  On  the  15th  they  reached  the  fpoj)  of  the 
Gr^t  Glacier.  They  steered  northward,  keeping 
parallel  with  the  Racier,  and  from  five  to  seven  miles 
distant  froiA  it.  The  thickness  of  the  ice  over  which 
they  journeyed  was  found  to  be  seven  feet  five 
incnes>  They  traveled  frequently  with  the  snow  up 
tQ  their  kinees.  When  they  had  reached  Peabody 
Bay  they  encountered  the  bergs,  whose  surface  was 
fresh  and  glassy.  Some  of  these  were  rectangular 
in  shape  $nd  some  were  square ;  and  their  length  va- 
riadfrom >a<|^iarterof  ami^eto  a  mile.  The  task  of- 
triifir^|{eiQver  th^ese:  berg^  was  full  of  difiiculty  and 


■tilf'-ln  iN%fi^t#>#s  -*4' 


'      tm%t(v]i»^i^ 


.tf. 


|>]U  XAmV  IZPEDSTKnh  iv^«rt 


4M^ 


danger.    At  length  they  made  their  way  thr^njglb, 
them  to  t^  smoc^er  ice  whieh  lay  beyood,  f') 

On.  the  19th  of  June,  haying  encatnped,  Morton  a»> 
cended  a  high  bers,  in  order  to  examine  t^eir  fatnre 
roate  i^4  BurTey  the  enrroonding  desolation.  From 
thia  point  he  beheld  an  extensive  plain  whidLstretdied 
awaj[  toward  the  north,  which  proved  to  be  the  OvMifc' 
Glacier  of  Humboldt,  as  it  appeared  towaid  the  in^ 
terior)  which  also  fronted  o»  the  bay.  from  thia 
point  the  advance  of  the  party  was  ^riloua.  They, 
w^ere  freqnei^tiy  im^ested  by  wide  and  aeep  fissures  in. 
the  ice. ,  This  dimculty  compelled  them  to  turn  to* 
ward  the  west.  Soine  of  these  chasms  were  four  feet 
wide,  and  eontained  water  at  the.bottom.^  From  this, 
point  they  beheld  the  distant  northern  shore,  termed 
the  "  West  Land."  Jts  af^ftranee  was  mountainous 
and  rolling.  Its  distance  from  thenl  seemed  to  be 
about  sixty  miles. 

At  length,  by  the  21st  of  June,  the  party  reached 
a  point  opposite  the  termination  of  the  Great  Glacier. 
It  appeared  to  be  mixed  with  earth  and  rocks.   Trav- 
ellug  on,  they  reached  at  length  the  head  of  Kennedy 
chfumel,  and  saw  beyond  that  the  open  water.  Passing 
in  their  route  a  cape,  they  called  itCape  Andrew  Jack- 
8on<  -Here  they  found  good  smooth  ice;  for  during 
the.last  few  days  they  had  passed  over  rotten  iee, 
whi^h  not  unlreqnenuy  threatened  to  break  beneath 
thenk    Having  entered  iJie  curve  of  a  bay,  tl^y  . 
named  it  after  Bobert  Morris,  the  peat  financier  of  ^ 
the  revolution.    On  the  smooth  ice  in  this  vicinity  tho  ■- 
party  advanced  at  the  rato  of  six  miles  per  hour. 

Kennedy  Channel  here  grew  narrower,  but  after*' 
ward  it  widened  again.    Brok^st  ice  in  large  masses 
was  floating  in  it;  but  there  were  passages  fifteen  i 
miles  in  width,  which  remained  perfectly  clear.    Sixi 
miles  inward  from  the  channel,  mountains  rose  to  the'i 
view.    On  the  22d  of  June  they  encamped^after  hav» 
ing  traveled  forty-eight  miles  in  a  direct  Une*    l^ey 
were  BliU  npoatioe  shores  of  the  ohanneL    Ihey  could  ^ 


■^  J 


f  1 


iMit 


FBOGl 


mp  AadnetJUiDowBT. 


pia|iil;f  vee  tile  opposite  ihor^,  whidi  apjpeiured  pre- 
cipitous. And  rormouiited  with  snjga^oaf  fi&ftped 
nmiBtaiiiii  AttMa  pinrtof  their  journey  they  eu- 
oDnntcEred  a  FoIat  bear,  with  ber  CQb.  A  desperate 
^ht  einsued,  in  whi<di  me^wngalar  instincts  of  nature 
were  etrikingly  iUtistmted,  hy  the  det^>enite  efforts 
made  by  the  poor  brute  to  protect  bet  helpless  off- 
spviiM.  Both  were  edain^  A  shallow  bay  coTered 
with  lee  was  then  crossed.  They  passed  several  isl- 
aads  which^l^  in  the  ehannel,  which  they  named 
sdisr  Bir  John  Frank^n  and  Captain  Orozier.  The 
d^s  which  here  constituted  the  shore  of  the  chan- 
i^  Nwere  very  high,  towering  at  least  two  thou^ 
sand  feet  aboTe  its  siurfade.  The  paliy  attempted  to* 
asoeiid  these  cliffs;  but  found  it  impossible  to  mount 
nu»e  than  a  few  hundred  feet.  On  the  highest  point 
which  they  attained,  a  walking  pole  was  fastened, 
with  the  Grinnell  flag  of  the  Ani<irUe  attached  to  it; 
and  thus  for  an  hourimd  a  half  this  standard  was  per- 
mitted to  wave  over  the  highest  northern  region  of 
the  earth  ever  attained  by  the  foot  of  man. 

They  here  encountered  a  cape,  and  the  party  de^ 
sired  to  pass  around  it,  in  or^rto  ascertain  whethet': 
there  lay  any  unknown  land  beyond  it.    But  they 
found  it  ii&poBfiible  to  advance.    This  then  was  the 
utmost  limit  and  termination  of  their  journey  toward ' 
the  pole.  -Mr.  IMbrton  ascended  an  eminence  here^- 
.and  carefully  scrutinized  the  aspects  cf  nature  all' 
around  him.    Six  degrees  toward  the  west  of  north, ' 
hft  .observed  a  lofty  peak,  truncated  in  its  form,  and - 
about  thitte  thousand  feet  in  height.    This  elevation  i 
is  named  Mount  Edwiud:  Parry,  after  the  great  pio- 
neer .of  Arctic  adventure;  and  ig4;he  most  extreme" 
northern  point  of  land  known  to  exist  upon  the  globe. 
Fjrpm  the  position  which  Mr.  Morton  had  attained, ' 
he  beheld  toward  the  north,  from  an  elevation  of  four 
hundred |«et,  a  boundless  waste  of  waters  stretching^ 
away  towkpd  the  pole.    Not  a  particle  of  ice  encum^^ 
b«>ed  its  sterface.    Hehetrd  the  dashing  of  unfn^en 


.7:^08.  KJlMb's  £XFBDrri01f.     ^"^ 


wftTM,  and  beheld  a  rolling  snrf  like  that  of  mbi% 
g«niftl  climes,  mshing  and  dashingagainst  the  r6cks 

Xn  the  shore.  This  was  certainly  a  mysterions 
^  nomenon.  Here  was  a  flnid  sea,  in  the  midst  of 
whole  continents  of  ice,  and  that  sea  seemed  to  wash 
the  Pole  itself.  The  eye  of  the  explorer  snrveyed  at 
least  forty  miles  of  nninterrnpted  water  in  a  northern 
direction.  The  point  thus  reached  in  this  exploring 
expedition,  was  about  five  hundred  miles  distant  from 
the  Pole;  Had  the  party  been  able  to  convey  thither 
a  boat,  they  might  have  embarked  upon  the  brisht 
and  placid  waters  of  that  lonely  ocean.  But  having 
been  able  to  make  this  journey  only  with  the  sledso, 
forther  explorations  were  of  course  impossible,  "flio 
most  remarkable  development  connected  with  these 
discoveries  was,  that  the  temperature  was  here  found 
to  be  much  more  moderate  than  |t  was  further  south. 
Marine  birds  sailed  through  tfi^eavens.  Bippling 
waves  followed  each  other  on  the  surface  of  the  deep. 
A  few  stunted  flowers  grew  over  the  barren  and 
rocky  shore.  The  inference  which  may  be  drawn 
from  these  and  other  facts  is,  that  this  op6n  sea, 
termed  the  Polar  Basin,  stretches  to  the  Pole  itself, 
or  at  least  continues  a  great  distance  until  its  course 
is  interrupted  by  other  projections  of  the  terra  firma. 
These  are  mysterious  inquiries,  still  the  great  deeid- 
erata  of  Arctic  travel ;  which  will  remain  unanswered, 
until  some  more  successful  explorer,  gifted  with 
greater  physical  endurance,  if  any  such  can  be,  and 
furnished  with  ampler  and  more  abundant  facilities 
than  any  of  his  predecessors,  shall  persist  in  defiance 
of  every  impediment  in  advancing,  until  he  boldly 
plants  his  toot  npon  tlie  very  spot  now  termed  the' 
North  Pole. 

The  several  parties  which  had  been  sent  forth  by! 
Dr.  Kane,  to  explore  the  regions  just  described,  ha^«. 
ing  returned,  the  season  of  Arctic  travel  had  nearly 
tenninated,  and  the  members  of  the  expedition  were ' 
^boBt  to  relapse  intM^  isinter  (]parters,  with  tbeiir  tumsl 


'-i  J 


AAA 


FBOOMM  er  AAOTIO  IHaOOVSBT. 


cUckneiB,  moBotofBy^  And  gloom.  Bat  befbre  rMig» 
ing  iJiemselves  cintirelj  to  thit  unwekome  Seclusion, 
Br.  Sane  resolved  to  make  an  effort  toreaeh  Beechev 
Idand.  At  this  point,  already  so  frequently  r^nrre^ 
to  in  the  preceding  pages^  Sir  Edward  Belcher^s 
squadron  was  then  supposed  to  be  stationed;  and 
from  tiliem  the  Ameriean  explorers  isnght  obtain 
both  provisions  and  information.  Aooordingly^  Dr. 
Sjme  manned  hia  boat,  called  the  *' Forlorn  Hope," 
which  was  twenty-three  feet  long,  and  six  feet  and  a 
half  beam.    The  necessary  amount  of  proviuons  were 

g laced  on  board,  and  the  bold  venture  was  undertaken, 
ometimes  the  boat  was  navigated  through  the  un- 
frozen channels  of  water,  which  interveuMl  between 
the  floes  of  ice ;  at.  others  she  was  placed  on  a  largft 
sledge  called  the  "  Faith,"  and  thus  transported  over 
tbd  Irozen  wastes.  «         \ 

This  partv  approaiHid  Littleton  Island,  which  had 
been  visitea  by  Captain  Ingleiield.    They  here  ob- 
tained a  vast  quantity  of  eider  ducks.    They  then 
pasded  Flagstaff  Point  and  Oombermere  Oape.    Then 
came  Oape  Isabella  and  Oape  Frederick  VU.    On 
the  23d  of  July  they  reached  Hakluyt  Island;  andr 
thence  they  steered  for  Oary  Islands.    But  on  the 
Slat  of  July,  when  they  had  reached  a  point  but  ten' 
miles  distant  from  Cape  Parry,  their  further  progress 
was  absolutely  stopped.    A  solid  mass  of  ice  lay  be- 
fore them  on  the  sea,  extending  as  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach.    This  barrier  was  composed  of  the  vast 
seas  of  ice  which  had  drifted  through  Jones'  Sound  on 
the  west,  and  those  of  Murchison's  on  the  east.    The: 
adventnrers  were  now  compelled  to  retrace  their 
way.    About  the  1st  of  August  they  regained  the 
brig,  without  having  met  with  any  accident,  but  jdso 
without  having  succeeded  in  attaiainff  the  object  of 
their  excursion.    They  found  the  "Advance^'  juttas^ 
tightly  wedged  into  the  ice  as  it  had  been  during  the ' 

SreiC^Ung  eleven  months,  with  no  hope  of  gettiug 
fir  |elfiaae|d.    Two  important  questionaBow  demand  r 


.^i 


MMB^B  KZJPHHTWV^ 


ed;  iktit  «tteiiti(m.  Tho  first  was,  how  they  were  to 
paea  this,  their  second  winter  in  the  Aretic  regions; 
and  how  they  were  to  make  their  escape  in  the  ensik' 
insspring.  .      ^ 

l^nateyer  might  be  the  issue  of  the  fntnre,  Dr.  Kanw 
determined  to  leave  a  memorial  at  the  spot  which 
]v%  then  eecnpied,  to  prove  to  his  snec^sors  tiie-faot 
that  he  and  his  expedition  had  been  there.  '  He  paint- 
ed the  words  '^  Advance)  A.  B.  1853-54,"  npon  the 
broad  fiice  of  a  rock,  which  rested  on  a  high  diff  look- 
ing out  upon  the  frozen  waste; .  ^CTear  this  qpot  a  hole 
was  drilled  into  the  rock,  and  a  paper  containing  a 
history  of  the  expedition  and  its  present  condition, 
was  placed  in  glass,  and  sealed  into  the  cavity  with 
melted  lead.  Close  at  hand  were  buried  the  corpses 
of  the  two  members  x>f  the  expedition  who  had  al- 
ready ended  their  toils  and  sufiBerings. 

The  prospect  of  a  second  winter  amid  the  eternal 
snows  And  ice  of  the  Polar  Cirele,  was  not  inviting  to 
the  adventurers.  A  portion  of  them  felt  convinced 
of  the  practicability  ot  an  immediate  escape  to  the< 
south.  X)n  the  24th  of  August  Dr.  Elane  summoned 
all  hands  together,  and  clearly  stated  to  them  the  as-  . 
peets  of  the  case.  He  advised  that  all  should  remain 
by  the  brig  till  the  next  spring;  although  he  declared 
that'  those  who  wished  to  return  could  make  Hie  at* 
tempt.  Eight  men  concluded  to  remain;  and  nine 
of  them  resolved  that,  rather  thai^  endure  the  miseries 
oi;V«  second  winter  near  theP(de,  they  would  run  the 
risks  of  an  instant  attempt  to  escape.  This  resolution 
they  made  immediate  preparations  to  execute.  A 
fall  share  of  the  remaining  provisions  was  measured 
oat  to  them.  They  were  assured  of  a  welcome  re- 
ception if  they  chose  to  return;  and  they  started 
forth  on  August  28th  from  the  brig..  One  of  this 
party  returned  to  the  vessel  in  a  few  days ;  the  rest- 
wandered  for  many  monthS)  and  endured  mueh  misery  ' 
and  exposure,  betbre  they  rejoined  their  wiser  com 
radet  in  the  brig.      \J  9% 


FR061 


UP  Aweno  DueovsBr. 


Dr.  Kane  and  the  eight  men  who  remained  i^th 
him,  immediately  began  to  prepare  for  the  honors  oft 
the  ensnin^  winten  They  garnered  a  large  amount 
of  moss  with  which  thoy  lined  and  padded  the  qiiar> 
ter^iecki  This  expedient  rendered  their  cabin  imper- 
ious to  the  changes  and  the  extreme  seyerity  of  tiie 
atmosphere.  They  stripped  off  the  oater-decnc  plank- 
ins  of  the  brig^  for  the  pnrpose  of  fire-wood.  The 
chief  necessity  of  the  explorers  was  fresh  meat,  to 
gaard  them  against  the  sonrYy.  To  obtain  this  food, 
treqaent  excursions  were  made  for  the  purpose  of  cap- 
turing^ seals.  On  one  of  these  occasions  Dr.  Ksaae 
narrowly  escaped  a  watery  grave.  He  was  at  tweWe 
miles'  distance  from  the  brig,  with  a  single  attendant. 
The  ice  broke  beneath  their  sledge,  and  they  were 
precipitated  into  the  water.  After  great  exertions 
and  amid  extreme  danger,  they  succc^ed  in  regaixi- 
ing  ice  sufficiently  eis^^g  to  bear  their  weight.  They 
lost  their  sledse,  tent,  kayack,  guns,  and  snow-shoes.-^ 

At  length,  by  the  2l8t  of  October,  the  rays  of  the 
sun  had  ceased  -to  reach  them ;  and  darkness — ^the 
cold  and  dieerless  darkness  of  an  Arctic  night  settled 
down  upon  them.  They  were  compelled  td  confine 
themselves  to  the  precincts  of  their  gloomy  cabin, 
and  waste  awayas  best  they  could,  the  slow  hours 
of  their  long  winter.  Their  only  light  was  an  occa^r 
sionai  aurora,  whose  pale,  brieht  arch  of  brilliant  hues 
seemed  to  be  resting  on  the  aistant  Pole.  The  ther- 
mometer now  ranged  34°  below  zero.  Thus,  in  this 
strange  monotony  of  routine  and  incident,  November 
and  jJecember  wore  away ;  except  that  during  the 
latter  month,  a  portion  of  the  party  who  had  deserted 
the  britf  on  tiie  28th  of  August  previous,  returned  to 
their  M  quarters.  They  had  suffered  much;  and 
had  left  the  remainder  of  their  party  two  hundred 
miles  distant  in  the  midst  of  great  destitution.  The 
thermometer  was  then  fifty  degrees  below  zero.  When 
Christmas  eame  it  was  celebrated  for  the  second  time 
by  this  gatfftnt  crew  of  heroes,  amid  the  Arctic  soli  t 


itt.  KAmf s  mLPKomm:  *^ 


m. 


tades,  with  tnch  means  as  ihey  could  eommand-^ 
whidi  indeed  wore  few ;  and  thus  ended  with  theiti 
the  year  1854. 

The  three  most  dangerons  and  dreary  months  of 
the  year — January,  February,  and  March — ^were  now 
before  them.  Dnrinff  these  months  it  was  exceeding 
ly  difficult  for  the  adVenturefb  to  procure  fk'esh  meat, 
wliich  was  their  only  preyentive  and  core  of  senryy. 
With  this  disease  eyory  member  of  the  party  became 
at  last  infected;  some  so  seriously  that  tneir  liyes 
were  in  danger.  Thus  the  dreary  drama  of  their  Arc- 
tic exile  dragged  on.  They  waited  patiently  for  the 
time  to  arriye  when  they  could  commence  the  neces- 
sary preparations  tor  the  journey  of  thirteen  himdred 
mites  which  they  would  umlertake  in  the  spMns. 
The  yessel:  would  eyidently  remain  so  firmly  fixed  m 
an  ocean  of  ice,  that  its  remoyal  would  be  utterly  im- 
possible. Their  return  must  be  efiSscted  with  the  com- 
bined use  of  sledges  imd  boats.  Y^  before  commenc- 
ing a  final  retreat,  D^  Kane  resolyed  to  attempt  once 
more  a  northern  excursion,  hopiug  that  it  might  xp- 
suit  in  some  useful  discovery  connected  with  the  ob- 
ject of  the  expedition. 

-  The  region  which  was  yet  to  be  explored  was  the 
farther  shores  beyond  Kennedy  Gliaanel.  The  aid  of 
the  dogs  was  indispensable  to  the  accomplishment 
of  this  task;  and  there  were  but  four  left  out  of  the 
sixty-two,  which  composed  their  stock  when  they  left 
Newfoundland.  An  arrangement  was  howeyer  made 
with  Kalutunah,  one  of  the  wandering  Esquimaux 
-whom  they  knew,  for  the  use  of  his  dogs  and  three 
sledges.  Thus  reen^ced,  Dr.  Kane,  accompanied  by 
seyeral  experienced  Esquimaux  trayelers,  commenced 
his  journey.  In  two  hours'they  reached  a  lofty  berg 
fifteen  miles  north  of  the  brig.  Tho  ylew  of  the  chan- 
nel pre8ente4  from  the  summit  of  this  berg  was  not 
very  favorable.  The  outside  channel  seemed  filled 
with  squeezed  ice;  and  on  the  frozen  plain  beyond, 
thebergs  appeared 'o  be  mndi  distortecL 


PBOQMM  «P  ASCnO  Bffi00rKBT. 


i*tf' 


N«¥ertbeleM»  Dr.  %iiAB  remAwtd  to  mal^ethe  Ten- 
tore.  They  quioklj  passed  fifteen  milee  farther; 
when  the  party  halted  to  feed  and  rest.  The  journey 
WM  then  resumed.  But  «nfortnn«(ely  the  traces  of 
*  Pokr  bear  soon  attracted  the  attention  of  the  Esqni- 
manX)  and  the  temptatioa  was  too  strong  for  famished 
men  to  resist.    A  chase  ensued.    The  animal  was 

Quickly  brought  to  bay,  attacked,  and  dispatohod. 
!hen  ensued  another  gorge^and  after  the  gorge  there 
necessarily  came  a,3  interval  of  repose  and  sleep. 

A  sleep  of  four  hours'  duration  ensued  upon  the 
open  snow ;  after  which  the  party  arose  and  resumed 
their  journey.  Dr.  E^ne  desired  to  ste^  directly  to 
the  northward ;  but  his  associates  declared  that  to 
cross  so  high  up  as  they  then  were,  was  impossible. 
The  fate  of  Baker  and  Schubert  in  the  preceding  year, 
who  attempted  this  feat,  recurred  to  their  recollob- 
tion,  and  convinced  them  that  the  attempt  would  be 
then  extremely  I||^dous.  Again  was  the  leader  of 
the  expedition  fate^  to  experience  a  disappointment, 
and  to  return  to  the  brig  without  having  accomplished 
tibe  purpose  for  which  he  set  forth.  But  before  he 
did  80,  he  embraced  the  opportunity  which  was  with- 
in his  reach,  once  more  to  examine  the  Great  Hum- 
boldt Glacier,  one  of  the  most  remarkable  monuments 
in  nature.  The  whole  horizon  before  him  was  bound- 
ed by  long  lines  of  ice-berffs^  They  undulated  about 
the  horizon,  but  as  they  aeseended  to  the  sea,  they 
resembled  an  uneven  plain  with  an  inclination  of 
about  nine  degrees,  still  diminishing  as  they  ap- 
proached the  foreground.  Vast  crevasses  appeared  in 
the  distance  like  mere  wrinkles.  Hies^  grew  Utrger 
as  they  approached  the  sea,  where  they  expanded  in- 
to gigantic  stairways. 

The  appearance  of  this  Great  Humboldt  Glacier 
resembles  in  some  respects  the  frozen  tuasses  of  the 
Alps;  and  reminded  the  bold  adventurer  of  tnany 
scenes  whiol^  he  had  witnessed  in  the  moimtains  of 
Norway  and  Switzerland.    The  average  height  of 


ti 


DR.  KAins's  BXPEDinoar. 


4M 


tUm  great  glacier  along  the  watei^s  edge  wm  about 
tbree  hundred  feet ;  and  this  height  was  presented 
by  an  uniform  perspective  of  sixty  miles  in  length; 
thus  exhibiting  one  of  the  most  sublime  and  imposing 
iq^taoles  which  thojnind  can  conceive.  The  config- 
urations of.  its  surface  and  form  clearly  indieate  that 
its  inequalities  follow  those  of  the  rocky  soil  on  which 
it  rests.  Having  made  various  observations  upon  the 
phenomena  connected  with  this  glacier,  Dr.  Kane  re- 
sumed his  return  toward  the  brie.  The  company 
traveled  over  the  frozen  surface  oi  the  ice  to  the  south 
of  Peabody  Bay.  The  first  spot  at  which  they  landed 
was  called  Cape  James  Kent  It  was  a  rutfged  and 
lofty  headland ;  and  it  presented  in  the  mstance  a 
strip^;e  spectacle  of  a  ruae  sur&ce,  covered  with  mil- 
lions of  tons  of  rubbish,  rocks  of  every  imaginable 
shape,  and  slates  of  immense  size  and  of  infinite  va- 
riety of  forms.  On  the  south-eastern  comer  of  Mar- 
i^U  Bay  the  party  found  a  group  of  Esquimaux  re- 
mains, consisting  of  a  few  deserted  huts  and  graves. 
They  were  the  rude  and  melancholy  relics  of  a  race 
oi  lonely  wanderers  who  had  passed  away.  These 
remains  were  surrounded  by  the  bones  of  the  seal  and 
the  walrus,  and  the  dissevered  vertebrss  of  a  whale. 
Therv  .rere  indications  that  the  spot  had  long  been 
deserted ;  and  yet  no  changes  had  been  effected  by 
the  sikent  lapse  of  time  in  those  frozen  and  primeval 
solitudes,  in  the  appearance  and  position  of  these 
aiini»le  monuments. 

Ijiis  journey  was  enHvened  by  several  interestin|g 
bear  hunts ;  and  a  few  details  respecting'this  Arctic 
entertainment  may  here  not  be  inappropriate. 

The  dogs  with  which  these  hunts  are  carried  (m, 
are  very  carefully  trained  to  play  their  part.  This 
part  is  not  to  attack  l^e  bear,  but  to  hinder  and  im- 
pede his  fiight.  While  one  of  these  dogs  occupies 
his  attention  in  front,  another  salutes  his  hind»  legs 
with  vigorous  bites.  This  keeps  the  animal  oscilA* 
ting  betweeA  several  distinct  parties  (^  foes ;  and  while 


llH  PBOOBMS  or  ABOTIO  DUOOTEBT. 

h«  it  bfttdiiig  with  one  and  tho  other,  the  hunters 
eome  up.  In  the  first  instance,  as  soon  a»  the  hear 
sees  the  approach  of  the  dogs  and  men,  he  rises  on 
his  hannehes,  carefully  inspects  his  foes  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  then  takes  to  his  heels.  As  the  hnnter  ap- 
proaches him,  if  he  is  riding  on  his  sledge  he  loosens 
the  traces  of  his  two  foremost  doffs,  which  releases 
them  from  their  harden,  and  enables  them  to  attack 
the  bear.  Soon  after,  the  rest  of  the  dogs  are  libera* 
ted  in  the  same  way.  When  there  are  two  hunters, 
bruin  is  soon  and  easily  dispatched.  They  surround 
him,  and  while  one  of  them  pretends  to  stab  him  with 
a  spdar  on  tiie  right  side,  and  thus  engages  the  bear 
in  his  defense  in  that  direction,  the  death  wound  is 
i^eted  on  the  left  by  tlie  same  weapon.  K  there 
be  but  one  hunter,  the  task  is  neither  so  easpr  nor  so 
safe.  The  hunter  grasps  his  lance  firmly  in  his  handk, 
and  proTokes  the  bear  to  pursue  him  byruntting 
across  his  path,  and  then  pretendins  to  flee.  When 
Ihe  bear  has  begun  the  chase,  the  hunter  suddenly 
doubles  on  his  track  b^  a  dexterous  leap ;  and  while 
the  bear  is  in  the  act  of  turning  around,  Ae  is  stabbed 
with  ^e  spear  in  his  left  side  below  the  shoulder. 
If  this  stab  be  skillfully  executed,  the  bear  is  at  once 
disabled  and  soon  expires.  If  it  is  not,  the  hunter 
has  then  to  run  for  his  life,  aflber  leaving  'his  spear 
sticking  in  the  side  of  his  victim.  If  the  bear  gets 
the  hunter  in  his  grasp,  he  salutes  him  with  divers 
hugs  and  squeezes,  which  are  much  more  vigorous 
and  affectionate  than  agreeable.  He  sometimes  also 
uses  his  teeth.  Dr.  Kane  saw  some  Esquimaux  hun- 
ters who  had  been  bitten  behind  in  the  calves  of  the 
legs;  and  .another  who  had  received  a  similar  salute 
scnnewhat  higher  up. 

Having  returned  to  the  brig,  Dr.  Eane  resumed 
his  preparations  tor  final  departure.  Frozen  fast  as 
she  was  in  the  ice,  there  was  no  possibility  of  remov- 
ing her.  The  only  possible  means  of  escape  was  by 
4he  combined  use  of  boats  and  sledges.    The  part^ 


1 1 


DB.  xAif  k'i  BZPEUmaV. 


4m 


w%vX  to  work  induitriouslj  is  the  nMinufiMtim  of 
olothing  snitable  to  the  journej.  Oabvas  moecMini 
were  made  for  each  of  the  party,  aiid  aaurplnt  sup- 
ply of  three  dozen  was  added  to  the  stocK.  Thcar 
Doots  were  made  of  carpeting,  with  soles  of  walris  "or 
seal  hide,  and  some  had  b^n  fabricated  from  the 
chafing  gear  of  the  brig.  Other  portions  of  their 
clothing  were  made  oat  of  blankets.  Ererj  one  aot~ 
^  as  his  own  tailor.  Their  bedding  was  made  oat 
of  the  woolen  curtains  with  which  their  berths  in  the 
brig  had  been  adorned.  These  were  aoilted  wi^ 
eider  down,  and  bu^o  robes  were  added  to  increase 
their  warmth. 

Their  provision  bags  consisted  of  sail-doth,  made 
water-tight  by  the  application  of  tar  and  pitch.  They 
were  of  various  sises,  so  as  to  be  more  conveniently 
stowed  away  in  the  boats.  The  ship-bread  was  pow- 
dered by  being  beaten  with  a  c^stan-bar,  and  then 
pressed  down  into  the  bags.  Pork-fat  and  tallow 
Doing,  melted  down,  were  poured  into  other  bags  as 
iiito  moulds,  and  thou  left  to  freeze.  Concentrated 
bean-soup  was  cooked  up  and  prepared  in  the  same 
way.  llie  flour  and  meat-biscuit  were  protected 
from  moisture  in  double  bags.  Dr.  Kane's  plan  was 
to  subsist  liis  party  for  some  time  after  they  left  the 
brig,  bv  new  supplies  of  provisions  which  he  could 
bring  from  the  vessel  by  trips  with  his  dog-team. 

The  means  of  conveyance  which  were  to  carry  the 
company  on  this  long  and  weary  journey,  and  which 
were  to  be  carried  by  them  in  a  great  measure,  con- 
sisted of  three  boats.  These  had  all  suffered  very 
materially  from  exposure  to  the  ice  and  the  Arctic 
storms ;  and  were  scarcelv  sea-worthy.  They  were 
strengthened  and  tinkered  in  every  possible  way  by 
oak  bottom-pieces,  and  by  wash-boards  which  protect- 
ed the  gunwales  and  gave  them  greater  depth.  A 
housing  of  canvas  was  stretched  upon  a  ridge  line, 
which  was  suspended  by  stanchions,  and  which  were 
|listi»qie(i  over  the  aides  of  the  boats  to  jaek-stayA. 


Mi 


PBoo; 


Of  ABono  vuoonrEar, 


'Eaeh  bott  had  a  lingle  mast,  and  it  was  to  arranj^ 
4hat  it  oould  be  easily  nnshipped,  and  carrfdd  along- 
side the  boat.  The  boats  were  mounted  on  sledges. 
The  provisions  were  stored  oarefhllj  under  the  thwurti. 
The  Doats  were  to  be  drawn  bj  the  men  with  riie-rad- 
dies,  or  straps,  which  passed  over  tlie  shonlder  aiul 
were  attached  by  a  long  trace  to  the  sledge.  The 
philosophical  instmments  were  carefully  boxed  and 
padded,  and  placed  in  the  stem-sheets  of  one  of  the 
Doats.  Bpy-glasses  and  small  instmments  the  trav- 
elers earned  on  their  persons.  The  powder  and  shot, 
which  now  became  of  infinite  valae  to  them,  wore  dis- 
tributed in  bags  and  tin  canisters.  The  percussion 
caps,  the  most  valuable  of  all,  Dr.  Kane  himself  took 
charge  of  and  reserved. 

Havinff  made  all  the  preparations  which  werepos- 
sible  under  the  circumstances  of  the  case.  Dr.  Kari^ 
announced  to  his  crew  that  ho  appointed  the  17th  of 
Hay  as  the  day  of  their  final  departure  A*om  the  brig. 
Each  man  was  allowed  to  select  and  retain  eight 
pounds  of  personal  effects.  The  announcement  of 
their  final  departure  toward  the  south  was  not  received 
by  the  members  of  the  expedition  with  the  enthusiasm 
which  Dr.  Kane  had  expected.  Some  doubted  the 
reality  of  the  journey  home ;  and  suspected  that  it 
was  merely  a  maneuver  to  remove  the  sick  to  the 
hunting  grounds.  Others  thought  that  the  real  pur- 
pose was  only  to' journey  further  south,  whilst  the 
bri^  was  retained  as  a  refu^  for  them  to  retreat  to ; 
while  others  suspected  that  their  leader  merely 
wished  to  reach  some  point  on  the  coast  where  he 
could  obtain  a  rescue  from  passing  whalers,  or  IVom 
some  of  the  English  Arctic  expeditions  which  were 
still  supposed  to  be  lingering  in  those  remote  regions. 
The  sicK  among  the  crew,  who  had  long  been  accus- 
tomed to  inaction  and  indalgence,  declared  themselves 
unfit  to  be  removed,  and  unable  to  travel  a  milei 

But  in  ^ite  of  all  these  obstacles,  the  resolution  of 
the  commaiider  of  the  f  xpedition  was  uni^nible. 


"it/ 


OB.  xavb'b  mmDmoth-  ^^ 


Wl 


He  WM  determined  to  oommenoe  this  MemorAbU 
iourney  on  the  day  appointed,  at  all  hazaidt.  At 
length  the  day  preceding  that  of  departare  arrived. 
The  boats  were  removed  from  the  brig  aad  placed 
upon  the  ice.  This  process  seemed  to  revive  to  some 
decree  the  desponding  spirits  of  the  men.  The  pro- 
visions w«re  then  conveyed  into  them ;  and  other 
necessary  transfers  were  made.  After  some  hours  of 
active  operations,  the  whole  of  their  task  was  com- 
pleted ;  and  the  men  returned  on  board  the  bri^,  in 
order  to  spend  their  last  ni|^ht  in  that  familiair 
shelter*  Atler  supper  they  retired  to  rest,  in  order  to 
recruit  their  energies  for  the  toils  which  were  to  com- 
mence on  the  ensuing  day,  upon  the  final  snooess  of 
which  their  future  eiustonce  depended. 

At  length  the  wished-for  moment  arrived  when  the 
weary  adventurers  were  to  take  their  last  farewell  of 
the  vessel  which  had  been  associated  with  them  in 
so  many  vicissitudes  and  dangers.  All  hands  were 
assembled  together  in  silence  in  the  winter  chamber.  • 
The  day  was  Sunday,  and  the  exercises  began  by  the 
reading  of  a  chapter  of  the  scriptures.  Dr.  Kane 
then  took  Sir  John  Franklin's  portrait  from  its  frame, 
and  enclosed  it  in  an  ludia-rubber  scroll.  The  sev- 
eral reports  of  inspection  and  survey  were  then  read, 
which  set  forth  what  results  had  already  been  attained, 
and  contained  the  reasons  which  induced  the  com- 
mander of  the  expedition  to  take  the  steps  which 
were  to  ensue.  He  then  addressed  his  men  in  refer- 
ence to  Uie  journey  on  which  they  were  about  to  en- 
ter, explaining  its  necessity,  the  method  according  to 
which  It  was  to  be  conducted,  and  the  certainty  of 
final  relief  and  escape  which  it  would  bring  them,  if 
they  reaolutely  persisted  in  carrying  it  out.  Thirteen 
hundred  miles  of  ice  and  water  lav  between  their 
present  positi(;^  and  the  shored  of  JNorth  Greenland* 
He  closed  by  directing  their  hope»  of  safety,  not  ua^ 
fitly,  to  that  great  Unseen  Power  who  had  already 
rescued  themtrom  a  thousand  deaths,  and  who  would 


iae 


PBOGBIBB  OF  ▲BOTIC^  DISOOTEBT. 


continue  to  be  their  verj  present  help  in  every  time 
of  need. 

The  men  responded  to  the  sentiments  and  purposes 
expressed  by  Dr.  Kane  with  more  enthusiasm  than 
he  seems  to' have  anticipated.    They  drew  up  a  state- 
ment in  which  they  expressed  their  conviction  of  the 
necessity  which  existea  of  abandoning  the  brig;  the 
impossibility  of  remaining  a  third  winter  in  the  ice  \ 
the  obligation  which  rested  on  them  to  convey  the 
sick  carefully  along  with  them ;  and  their  determina- 
tion to  cooperate  with  their  leader  in  his  proposed 
measures  of  escape.    This  statement  was  handed  to 
Dr.  Kane.    He  also  had  prepared  a  narrative  of  the 
considerations  which  induced  him  to  abandon  the  ves- 
sel.   This  he  posted  to  a  stanchion  near  the  gangway, 
BO  that  it  mi^ht  attract  the  attention  of  any  one  who 
approached  the  vessel.    The  party  then  went  on  deck  ;^ 
the  flags  were  hoisted  to  the  mast-head,  and  lowered 
again;  the  men  paraded  twice  around  the  brig,  care- 
fully scrutinizing  her  timbers,   associated    in  their 
minds  with  so  many  pleasing  and  painful  recollec- 
tions ;  and  having  thus  saluted  the  vessel  for  the  last 
time,  they  rushed  away  on  or  the  ice  toward  the  boats, 
which  had  already  been  removed,  filled  with  their 
cargo,  and  made  ready  to  commence  their  homeward 
journey. 

The  whole  return  party  consisted  of  seventeen  per- 
sons, including  Dr.  Kane.  Four  of  tnese  were  sick, 
and  unable  to  move.  The  rest  were  divided  into  two 
companies,  and  appropriated  to  the  several  boats; 
Dr.  Kane  took  charge  of  the  dog-team,  which  was  to 
be  used  for  the  purpose  of  conveving  provisions  from 
the  vessel  to  the  crew,  during  the  first  few  days  of 
their  journey.  To  the  boat  called  "  Faith,''  McGary, 
Ohlsen,  Bonsall,  Petersen,  and  Hickey  were  assigned. 
To  the  "  Hope,"  Mortbn,  Sontag,  Kiley,  IBlake,  and 
Godfrey  were  detailed.  "- 

The  first  stage  of  the  journey  was  to  a  spot  called 
Auoatok«  which  had  been  a  halting  place  iH  their  win- 


.  f «      Nt.  JKAME  8  SXPEDinOV.  >  "t 


409 


ter  journeys.  It  was  a  einglo  hnt,  composed  of  mde 
and  heavy  stones,  and  resembled  a  cave  more  than 
it  did  a  house.  Strange  to  say,  this  bleak  and  for- 
lorn corner  of  that  frozen  hemisphere,  the  gloomiest 
and  most  detestable  on  the  whole  face  of  tne  globe, 
bore  a  name  which  was  imposed  by  the  least  poeti- 
cal of  human  beings,  the  Esquimaux,  which  was  not 
devoid  of  beauty ;  for  Anoatok  in  the  jargon  of  the 
shivering  natives  means  "  the  wind-loved  spot."  It 
was  perched  on  the  extreme  point  oi  a  rocky  promon- 
tory, and  commanded  a  wide  view  of  the  icy  straits, 
both  toward  the  north  and  south. 

Dr.  Kane  had  exerted  himself  to  repair  the  hut,  and 
make  it  fit  to  shelter  the  sick.  He  had  added  a  door 
to  its  broken  outlet,  and  had  introduced  a  stove  and 
stove-pipe.  Other  improvements  had  been  made. 
A  solitary  pane  of  glass,  which  once  had  faced  a 
daguerreotype,  was  inserted  in  the  door,  to  give  a 
scanty  light.  The  provisions  which  had  been  re- 
moved to  this  place  were  eight  hundred  pounds  in 
weight.  Seven  hundred  pounds  still  remained  in  the 
brig,  to  be  removed  by  successive  journeys  of  the 
dog-team.  The  services  of  these  six  do^s  were  in- 
deed invaluable.  In  addition  to  all  their  previous 
journeys,  they  carried  Dr.  Kane  to  and  fro,  with  a 
well-burdened  sledge,  nearly  eight  hundred  miles  du- 
ring the  first  two  weeks  after  they  left  the  brig,  be- 
ing an  average  of  fifty-seven  miles  per  day. 

So  feeble  and  reduced  were  the  parties  who  drag- 
ged the  two  boats,  that  they  advanced  but  a  mile  a 
day,  and  on  the  ^4th  had  only  made  seven  miles. 
The  halts  were  regulated  entirely  by  the  condition 
of  the  men  who  required  longer  rest  at  some  periods 
than  at  others.  The  thermometer  ranged  below  zero, 
and  the  men  slept  at  night  in  the  boats,  protected  by 
their  canvas  coverings.  Had  it  not  been  for  the 
shelter  which  the  hut  at  Anoatok  afibrded,  the  four 
sick  men — GoodfellowJ  Wilson,  Whipple,  and  Ste- 
phenson— they  must  have  perished.    At  the  time  of 


ripM 


m»o 


PBOGRBSB  OF  ABCnO  DI800YESY. 


their  remoyal  into  it,  tbej  were  so  drawn  up  ^ith  tfie 
■curvy  that  they  were  wholly  unable  totnove.  Yet 
their  delay  in  this  hut  was  extremely  gloomy ;  for 
it  lasted  from  the  time  that  thejr  were  removed  from 
the  brig,  until  they  were  carried  forward  by  the 
sledge  to  the  boats  which  had  been  drag^d  by  their 
respective  crews  in  advance  of  them.  l)uring  this 
interval  they  were  carefully  fed  and  attended  by  Dr. 

j^^ne. 

Dr.  Elane's  visits  to  the  brig  from  time  to  titne,  in 
order  to  obtain  supplies  of  provisions,  were  full  of  in- 
terest to  him.  On  the  first  of  these  he  found  the  ves- 
sel already  inhabited  by  an  old  raven,  which  had  often 
been  seen  hovering  around,  and  whom  they  had  called 
Magog.  The  fire  was  lighted  in  the  galley,  the  pork 
was  melted,  large  batches  of  bread  were  baked,  dried 
apples  were  stewed,  and  then  the  sledge  was  mailo 
ready  to  return  with  the  load.  Such  was  usually  the 
routine  of  Dr.  Kane's  lonely  visits  to  the  brig.  Af- 
ter the  first  of  these  visits,  when  he  returned  to  the 
"  wind-loved  spot,"  Anoatok,  with  his  sledge,  he  found 
that  the  sick  who  still  remained  there  had  exhausted 
their  provisions ;  that  their  single  lamp  had  gone  out ; 
that  the  snow  drifts  had  forced  their  way  in  at  the 
door,  so  that  it  could  not  be  shut ;  that  the  wind  was 
blowing  furiously  through  the  open  tenement ;  and 
that  the  thermometer  ranged  only  thirteen  degrees 
above  zero.  The  invalids  were  disheartened  and  hun- 
gry. A  fire  was  built  with  tarred  rope ;  a  porridge 
was  prepared  for  them  out  ef  meat  biscuit  and  pea 
soup ;  the  door  was  fastened  up ;  a  dripping  slab  of 
fat  pork  was  suspended  over  their  lamp  wick ;  and 
then  all  turned  into  their  sleeping  bags,  afteu  a  hearty 
though  not  very  savory  meal.  So  overcome  were 
they  all  with  exposure  and  weakness,  that  they  slept 

I  until  after  all  their  watches  had  run  down. 

'^:  Dr,  Kane  then  hurried  forward  to  the  sledge  party, 
who  had  by  that  time  reached  Ten  Mile  Kavine. 
They  were  struggling  with  the  deep  snows,  were  ovei" 


tr  ^DB.  SANie't  XZPXDlTIOlf. 


fiOl 


whelmed  with  fatiene,  and  were  somewhat  disheart- 
ened. Although  their  feet  were  much  swollen,  they 
had  toiled  that  day  for  fourteen  hours.  Some  were 
suffering  fi<om  snow^hlindness,  and  were  scarcely 
able  to  work  at  the  drag-ropes.  In  spite  of  all  their 
toils  and  sufferings,  morning  and  evening  prayers 
.  were  constantly  read  by  the  adventurers.  Meanwhile 
the  sledge  party  advanced  slowly  towai*d"the  south. 
On  the  28th  Dr.  Kane  paid  his  last  visit  to  the  bri^. 
He  was  compelled  to  leave  behind  his  collections  in 
Natural  History,  his  library,  and  some  of  his  instru- 
ments, such  as  his  theodolite  and  chart-box,  the 
useless  daguerrotypes,  and  other  companions  and 
mementoes  of  Arctic  toil  and  suffering.  Then  he 
mounted  his  sledge ;  gave  a  last  look  at  the  blackened 
hull  and  spars  of  the  Advance;  fiercely  whipped  up 
his  dogs  in  a  paroxysm  of  mournful  gloom;  and 
sped  away  for  the  last  time,  over  the  snowy  waste 
which  had  been  associated  with  so  many  recollec- 
tions. Thus  was  left  behind  at  last  in  its  frozen  bed, 
the  vessel  which  had  been  connected  with  two  Arctic 
expeditions,  one  of  w^hich  is  the  most  remarkable  on 
record ;  and  there  doubtless  she  remains,  an  unseen 
monument  of  human  enterprise,  benevolence,  and 
A&durance. 

#  From  Anoatok  Dr.  Kane^s  next  labor  was  to  re- 
move the  provisions  and  men  further  on  in  their  route. 
A  friendly  Esquimaux,  named  Metek,  was  sent  for- 
ward to.  the  next  station,  with  two  bags  of  bread-dust, 
each  weighing  ninety  pounds.  The  n^t  station  was 
£tah  Bay.  About  midnight  Dr.  Kane  approached 
that  vicinity.  The  sun  was  low  in  the  heavens,  and 
the  air  around  was  marked  by  that  peculiar  stillness 
which  accompanies  the  great  solitudes  of  nature. 
Wiiile  feeling  the  oppressive  weight  of  that  silence, 
his  ears  were  suddenly  greeted  by  unexpected  sounds 
of  mirth  and  laughter.  He  had  approached  an  en- 
campment of  the  wandering  Esquimaux,  consisting 
of  about  thirtv  men,  women,  aud  children.    The  cause 


Mi 


M^ 


I'BgiQiuna  of  abctio  maoovEST. 


of  tbe^  joy  was  tho  capture  of  innumerable  birds 
called  Auks,  which  they  were  engaged  in  catching 
with  nets.  These  birds,  though  the  thermometer  was 
five  degrees  below  zero,  were  flying  about  in  the  great- 
est abundance;  and  the  hungry  Esquimaux  were 
eating  them  raw,  as  soon  as  taken.  He  saw  two  chil- 
dren nghting  for  an  owl,  which  as  soon  as  captured 
was  torn  limb  from  limb,  «nd  its  warm  flesh  eaten, 
and  its  blood  drunken,  almost  before  life  was  extinct. 
This  was  the  spot  which  these  birds  mysteriously 
chose  for  the  purpose  of  breeding,  from  year  to  year; 
and  tb"^  Esquimaux  as  regularly  found  their  way 
thither  in  pursuit  of  them. 

The  travelers  continued  their  weary  march  through 
the  snow,  dragging  their  boats  after  them.  Some- 
times, when  the  weather  moderated — for  it  was  sum- 
mer— ^the  sledges  broke  through.  Six  men  on  one 
occasion  were  Uirown  into  the  water ;  and  the  ^'Hope'' 
was  very  nearly  lost.  Help  came  to  them  from  the 
Esquimaux  at  £tah,  who  sent  them  the.  loan  of  their 
dogs,  together  with  an  additional  supply  of  fresh  pro- 
visions. The  dogs  were  of  infinite  service  in  drawing 
one  of  the  sledges,  upon  which  the  sick  men  were  con- 
veyed. At  this  period  an  accident  deprived  the  ex- 
pedition by  deatu  of  one  of  its  most  useful  members. 
W  hile  crossing  a  tide-hole,  one  of  the  runners  of  the 
"Hope"  sledge  broke  through  the  ice.  The  energy 
and  presence  of  mind  of  Ohrietian  Ohlsen  alone  saved 
her  from  being  lost.  By  a  prodigious  effort  he  passed 
a  capstan-barmnder  the  sledge,  and  thus  sustained  its 
weight  until  it  was  dragged  forward  to  firm  ice.  In 
doing  this  his  footing  gave  way  beneath  him ;  and  ho 
thus  was  compelled  to  strain  himself.  The  eftbrt 
ruined  him.  Some  internal  injury  had  been  inflicted 
by  the  eftbrt ;  and  he  died  three  days  afterward.  His 
body  was  sewed  up  in  his  own  blankets,  and  carried 
in  procession  to  the  head  of  a  little  gorge  to  the  east 
of  PekiutUk,  where  a  grave  was  excavated  in  the 
frozen  earth.    There  his  body  was  deposited  with  a 


««      DB.  KAHB  a  ILXPF.mnOK.^'N 


603 


few  simple  and  appropriate  ceremonies.  His  name 
and  age  were  inscribed  by  the  commander  on  a  strip 
of  sheet  lead ;  and  ere  nis  srave  was  filled  bj  his 
comrades,  the  brief  and  tonching  memorial  was  laid 
upon  his  manly  breast  A  small  mound  was  then 
erected  with  rocks  and  stones  over  his  lonelj  resting- 
place  ;  and  there  now  sleep,  in  that  cheerless  and  win- 
try tomb,  the  remains  of  l/hristian  Ohlsen. 

By  the  6th  of  June  the  party  reached  Littleton 
Island.  From  a  lofty  height  nere  of  some  eigjit  hun- 
dred fett,  Dr,  Kane  obtained  his  first  view  of  the 
open  water.  His  position  at  that  time  was  78°  22'  1* 
latitude,  and  74°  10'  longitude.  So  weary  were  the  men 
of  dragging  the  sledges  over  the  snow  and  ice,  that 
they  wished  to  take  the  direct  route  to  the  water, 
upon  which  they  were  eager  to  embark  with  the 
boats.  But  the  dan^era  of  the>  plan  proposed  over- 
ruled their  wishes,  and  the  inland  route,  though  longer, 
was  selected.  The  wished-for  water  which  greeted 
the  eyes  of  the  weary  travelers, ^vas  Hartstein  Bay; 
and  they  welcomed  it  with  emotions  of  rapture  re- 
sembling those  which,  as  Xenophon  records,  filled  the 
minds  and  excited  tlie  enthusiasm  of  the  ten  thousand 
Greeks  when,  after  their  long  and  perilous  march 
through  Asia  Minor,  and  their  escape  from  the  myr- 
iads of  Artaxerxes,  they  first  beheld  the  distant 
waves  of  the  sea  whose  billows  laved  the  shores  of 
their  beloved  Greece. 

On  the  16th  of  Juno  the  party  reac||ed  the  water. 
It  was  at  the  northern  curve  of  the  North  Baffin  Bay. 
The  surf  roared  sublimely  in  their  ears,  and  sounded 
like  sweet  music  after  their  long  and  cheerless  absence 
from  its  bosom.  The  next  thing  to  be  done  was  to 
prepare  the  boats  for  the  difficult  navigation  which 
was  to  ensue.  Tiiey  were  not  sea-worthy.  They  had 
been  split  with  frost,  warped  by  the  sunshine,  and 
were  open  at  the  seams.  They  were  to  be  calked, 
swelled,  launched,  and  stowed.  On  the  18th  the 
travelers  were  surrounded  by  all  the  Esquimaux  who 


(M)4 


PBOGBSM  OVABOnO  DISGOVEBT. 


bad  been  assembled  at  Etah.  They  had  come  to  bid 
the  Btrangen  farewell,  whom  they  had  served  to  the 
best  of  their  ability  at  lin  earlier  stage  of  their  jour 
hey.  They  were  indeed  a  miserable  and  forlorn  race, 
though  kindly  and  confiding  in  their  dispositions. 
They  received  various  presents  and  keepsakes  from 
the  travelers — such  as  knives,  files,  saws,  and  lumps 
of  soap.  They  had  been  ^f  great  service  in  lending 
hand-sledges  and  dogs ;  in  helping  to  carry  baggage 
and  the  sick  from  one  station  to  another,  along  tneir 
weary  route;  and  they  parted  from  the  strangers— 
probably  tiie  last  they  were  destined  ever  to  behold 
m  that  repulsive  clime — with  feelings  of  regret 
which  they  did  not  conceal.  Dr.  Kane  urged  them 
to  emigrate  furthw  south ;  for  there  they  could  ob- 
tain more  abundant  food,  and  escape  the  perils  of 
starvation  which  constantly  surrounded  them.       ^ 

'  On  the  evening  of  Sunday,  June  17th,  the  party 
hauled  their  boats  through  the  hummocks,  reached 
the  open  sea,  and  launched  their  frail  craft  upon  its 
waters.  But  Eolus  seemed  determined  not  to  per- 
mit them  yet  to  embark ;  for  he  let  loose  his  fiercest 
winds,  which  began  to  dash  a  heavy  wind-Ujpper 
against  the  ice-floe,  and  obliged  the  party  to  re- 
move their  boats  back  with  each  new  breakage  of  the 
ice.  The  goods  which  had  been  stacked  upon  the  ice 
were  conveyed  further  inward  to  the  distance  of  sev- 
eral hundred  yards.  The  storm  continued  to  rage, 
and  to  forbid^ them  to  venture  on  the  treacherous  ele- 
ment. At  last  Dr.  Kane  saw  the  necessity  of  per- 
mitting the  worn-out  men  to  repose,  and  in  oraer  to 
do  so  securely,  the  boats  were  removed  a  mile  from 
the  water's  edge.  The  sea  tore  up  the  ice  to  the  very 
base  of  the  berg  to  which  they  had  fled  for  refuge, 
and  the  angry  deep  seemed  like  a  vast  cauldron,  boil- 
ing with  intense  fury,  while  the  immense  fragments 
of  ice  crashed  and  rolled  together  with  a  sound  re* 
sembling  thunder. 

At  length  the  storm  subsided,  and  the  troubled  sea 


.¥«    DB.  KASB*t  SXVBDItfnr.  ^ 


^6 


beeftme  tranquil.  The  boats  were  asain  prtoared  for 
embarkation.  On  Tnesday,  the  l&th,  Dr.  Kane  anc* 
ceeded  in  getting  the  Faith  afloat,  and  he  was  soon 
followed  by  the  two  other  boats.  Soon  the  wind 
freshened,  and  the  mariners  began  their  welcome 
progress  homeward ;  bnt  they  had  a  long  and  perilous 
voyage  before  them  of  many  hundred  miles.  At 
length  they  doubled  Capo  Alexander.  They  desired 
first  to  halt  at  Sutherland  Island ;  but  the  ice-belt 
which  hugged  its  shores  was  too  steep  to  permit  them 
to  land.  They  then  steered  for  Hakluyt  Island,  bnt 
had  not  proceeded  far  before  the  red  boat  swamped. 
The  crew  were  compelled  to  swim  to  the  other  boats; 
and  the  former  was  with  difficulty  kept  afloat,  and 
dragged  in  tow  by  her  comrades.  Dr.  Kane  then 
fastened  his  boats  to  an  old  floe;  and  thus  sheltered, 
the  men  obtained  their  second  halt  and  rest.  When 
they  had  become  somewhat  refreshed,  they  rowed  for 
Hakluyt  Island,  at  a  point  less  repulsive  and  imprac- 
ticable than  the  one  attempted  the  day  before.  A 
spit  to  the  southward  gave  them  an  6pportunity  to 
haul  up  the  boats  on  the  land-ice,  as  the  tide  rose. 
From  this  the  men  dragged  the  boats  to  the  rocks 
above  and  inland ;  and  were  thus  secure.  It  snowed 
heavily  during  the  ensuing  night.  A  tent  was  pre- 
pared for  the  sick;  and  a  few  birds  were  luckilv  ob- 
tained to  vary  their  stale  diet  of  bread-dust  and  tallow. 

On  the  next  morning,  the  22d,  the  snow  storm 
still  continued  to  pelt  them;  but  they  pressed  on- 
ward toward  Northumberland  Island,  and  reached 
it.  They  rowed  their  boats  mto  a  small  inlet  of  open 
water,  which  conducted  them  to  the  beach  directly 
beneath  a  hanging  glacier  which  towered  sublimely 
into  the  heavens  to  the  immense  height  of  eleven 
hundred  feet,  ' 

The  next  day  they  crossed  Murchison  Channel,  and 
at  night  encamped  at  the  base  of  Gape  Parry.  The 
day  had  been  laboriously  spent  in  tracking  over  the 
ice,  and  in  sailing  through  tortuous  leads.    The  day 

33 


fMlHMMMM 


506 


PB06BIM  or  iBono  xxsoorsBT. 


following  they  reached  Fit2  Olarence  Book;  one  of 
the  most  Bingnlar  forms  to  be  seen  in  that  strange 
clime.  It  rises  to  an  immense  height  from  a  vast 
field  of  ice,  having  the  shape  of  an  Egyptian  pyra- 
mid surmounted  by  an  obelisic.  In  more  frequented 
waters  it  would  be  a  valued  landmark  to  the 
navigator. 

Stul  they  continued  to  toil  onward  from  day  to  dity. 
Their  progress  was  satisfactory,  though  their  labor 
was  exhausting.  Dr.  Kane  sometimes  continued  six- 
teen hours  in  succession  at  the  helm.  But  now  their 
allowance  of  food  began  to  grow  scanty.  It  was 
.  reduced  to  six  ounces  of  bread-dust  per  day,  and  a 
lump  of  tallow  about  the  size  of  a  walnut.  An  occa- 
sional cup  of  tea  was  their  only  consolation.  From 
this  stage  in  their  journey  Dalrymple  Eock  became 
perceptible  in  the  distance.  But  the  physical  strength 
of  the  men  began  to  give  way  beneath  their  labors 
and  their  insufficient  diet.  At  this  crisis  a  gale  struck 
them  from  the  north-T.est,  and  a  floe,  one  end  of 
which  having  grounded  on  a  tongue  of  ice  about  a 
mile  to  the  northward  of  them,  began  to  swing  round  to- 
ward the  boats,  and  threaten  to  enclose  and  crush  them. 
Soon  the  destruction  of  the  surrounding  ice  threatened 
their  own.  For  hundreds  of  yards  on  every  sidfe  around 
them  the  ice  was  crumbled,  crushed,  and  piled  in  irreg- 
ular and  fragmentary  masses.  The  thunder  of  the  con- 
fused ocean  of  frozen  wrecks  was  oTerpowering.  Sud- 
denly the  ice  seemed  to  separate  and  form  a  channel; 
and  in  that  channel,  so  unexpectedly  opened  before 
them,  the  men  rowed  th'e  boats  with  the  aid  of  their 
boat  hooks,  and  escaped  a  danger  which  a  moment 
before  seemed  inevitable  and  ruinous.  Soon  they 
found  themselves  in  a  lead  of  land- water,  wide  enough 
to  give  them  rowing  room,  and  they  hastened  on  to 
the  land,  which  loomed  ahead.  Beaching  it,  they 
eagerly  sought  a  shelter.  The  Hope  here  stove  her 
bottom,  and  lost  part  of  her  weather-boarding.  The 
water  broke  over  them,  for  the  storm  still  continued. 

-    m 


w 


1  xm.  mjjsKB  mxTKBrnom,  «jrt 


507 


'• 


I 


At  lenzth  tho  tide  rose  high  enonffh  at  three  o'clock 
to  enable  them  to  scale  the  ice-cli£  They  succeeded^ 
lU  ^^ulling  the  boats  into  a  doe^  and  narrow  gorse, 
wL. .  h  opened  between  the  towerine  cliffs,  llie  rookji 
seemed  almost  to  closo  above  their  heads.  An  ab- 
rupt tjurve  in  the  windings  of  this  gorge  placed  a  pro- 
tecting rock  behind  them,  which  shielded  them  irom 
the  violence  of  the  winds  and  waves.  They  had  reached 
a  haven  of  refuse  which  was  almost  a  cave ;  where  they 
found  a  flockot  eider  ducks  on  which  they  feasted ;  and 
wliere  for  throe  days  they  reposed  from  the  dangers 
and  labors  of  their  voyage.  This  retreat  they  fitly 
called  Weary  Man's  Rest. 

The  tburth  day  of  July  having  arrived,  it  was  com- 
memorated by  the  adventurers  by  a  few  diluted  and 
moderate  potations,  such  as  their  nearly  exhausted 
whisky  flask  permitted;  and  they  then  embarked 
and  rowed  industriously  toward  Wolstenholme  Island. 
During  some  succeeding  days,  they  continued  slowly 
to  progress  toward  the  south,  through  the  various  ktnes 
of  water  which  opened  between  tiie  b^lt-ice  and  the 
floe.  By  this  time,  the  constant  collisions  between 
the  boats  and  the  floating  ice  had  rendered  them  quite 
unsea  worthy.  The  ice  Imd  strained  their  bottom  tim- 
bers, and  constant  baling  was  necessary.  Their  fresh 
meat  had  all  been  consumed,  and  the  men  were  now 
reduced  again  to  short  rations  of  bread-dust. 

On  the  11th  of  July  they  approached  Cape  Dudley 
I^igges ;  but  their  progress  was  suddenly  stopped  by 
an  immense  tcngue  of  floe  which  extended  out  to  sea 
for^  a  prodigious  distance.  They  forced  their  way 
into  a  lead  of  sludge,  and  attempted  thus  to  advance. 
They  found  this  to  be  impossible ;  and  were  glad  to 
make  their  escape  from  it.  Df.  Kane  was  at  a  loss 
how  to  proceed.  He  mounted  an  ice-berg  to  recon- 
noiter  the  surrounding  prospect.  It  was  gloomy  and 
repulsive  in  the  extreme.  They  were  in  advanca  of 
the  season ;  and  he  discovered  that  in  those  waters 
toward  Cape  York,  the  j^oes  had  not  yet  broken  np^» 


s^ 


tEOQl 


Q9  AMOnO  DIMOVMT. 


e 


Thej  Memed  to  be  sarronnded  in  a  otd-de-^aej  with 
exhausted  strength  and  food,  and  no  possibility  of  es- 
caping nntil  the  summer  had  broken  open  for  them  a 
pathway  of  escape  through  the  water. 

Dr.  Aane  resolred  to  steer  for  the  rocky'  shore. 
Above  a  narrow  ledge  of  lofty  cliffs  mounted  one 
over  the  o^er  to  the  prodigious  height  of  eleven  hun- 
dred feet.  Hie  waves  dashed  violently  against  that 
ledge;  but  still  it  afforded  a  shelter  to  the  boats. 
Here  they  were  for  the  present  again  deposited ;  and 
fortunately  a  quantity  of  siills  were  found  in  the  crevi- 
ces of  the  rocks,  which  afforded  the  famished  wander- 
ers nutricious  food.  The  glacier  which  stretched 
away  in  front  of  them  was  about  seven  miles  across. 
On  ascending  the  heights  above  him,  Dr.  Kane  en- 
joyed a  magnificent  prospect  of  the  frozen  ocean,  the 
mr-de^lace,  whose  glittering  surface  spread  out  b^- 
fon^  and  around  him.  A  vast  undulating  plain  of 
purple-colored  ice  appeared,  extending  to  the  limits 
of  the  horizon,  resplendent  with  th^  varied  hues  of 
sun-tipped  crystaL  This  spot,  where  the  wanderers 
enjoyea  so  welcome  a  repose,  such  nutricious  food, 
and  such  sublime  perspective,  they  named  Providence 
Halt.    Here  they  remained  till  the  18th  of  July. 

In  resuming  their  voyage  from  this  point,  they  en- 
countered, an  accident  which  misht  have  proved  very 
serious.  When  they  launched  the  Hope,  she  was  pre- 
cipitated into  the  sludge  in  such  a  manner  as  to  carry 
away  her  rail  and  bulwark.  They  lost  overboard  their 
best  shot-gun,  and  an  equally  indispensable  utensil, 
their  kettle  which  had, served  them  in  every  possible 
capacity  of  kettle — such  as  soup-kettle,  paste-kettle, 
tea-kottle,  and  water-kettle.  Sailing  along  they  passed 
the  Crimson  Cliffs,  so'named  by  Sir  John  Ross.  They 
continued  thence  to  hug  the  shore.  The  weather 
now  moderated ;  and  their  voyage  assumed  more 
agreeable  and  genial  features.  The  men  freqitontly 
landed,  climbed  up  the  steep  cliffs  and  obtained 
ab^dant  quantities  of  auks.     Fir«s  were  kindled 


i|ML  Kjanf§  Bxpf^i 


509 


tb«  t    f,  Ant 
ished  with  Dion 
also  the  more  tru 
that  their  good  f 


ki  fear  9  whicK  entaed  w^re  rel- 

n  an  ^  nUnar}  appetite ;  and  that 

,  becai  ^  the  travelers  well  knew 

ane,  ^  i  their  propitious  seas  and 

weather,  would  not  u)n{.,  eontinue.    They  were  now 

in  78°  20'  north  latitude. 

On  the  2lBt  of  June  they  reached  Cape  York. 
Their  provisions  had  now  diminished  to  six  hundred 
and  forty  pounds,  or  about  thirtynBix  pounds  to  each 
man.  .The  question  to  be  determined  was,  whether 
they  should  delay  where  they  then  were  for  some 
days  until  the  shore-ice  opened ;  or  whether  they 
should  desert  the  coast  and  venture  boldly  upon  the 
open  water  to  the  west.  Dr.  Kane  ascended  th« 
rocks  upon  the  shore,  and  bythe  aid  of  his  fflass  care- 
fully scrutinized  the  ice.  The  latter  could  be  seen 
immoveably  fixed  to  the  shore  in  nearly  an  unbroken 
sweep  far  beyond  Bushnell  Island.  The  outside  floes 
were  large ;  and  one  large  lead  appeared  to  th§  view 
which  seemed  to  follow  me  main  noe  until  it  was  lost 
to  seaward. 

Dr.  Kane  explained  to  his  men  the  motives  which 
induced  him  to  adopt  the  course  upon  which  he  had 
determined.  The  boats  were  tlien  hauled  on  shore, 
examined,  and  repaired.  One  of  these,  the  Bed -Erie, 
was  stripped  of  her  cargo  and  prepared  to  bo  broken 
up  as  soon  as  occasion  should  require^  A  beacon  was 
also  erected  on  an  eminence,  which  could  be  dis* 
corned  both  from  the  south  and  the  west,  surmounted 
by  a  red  flannel  shirt.  Under  the  cairn  was  deposit- 
ed a  short  narrative  of  the  condition  and  purposes  of 
the^arty.  They  then  resumed  their  voyage  steering 
south  by  west  through  the  ice-flelds.  For  a  while 
they  progressed  safely  enough.  But  soon  the  irregu- 
liarities  of  the  surface,  loaded  as  it  was  by  hummocks  - 
and  even  larger  masses,  made  it  difficult  to  discern^^ 
the  state  of  the  ice  in  the  distance.  At  length  they" 
lost  their  way  ;  the  officer  at  the  helm  of  the  leading 
boat  deceivfid  by  the  irregular  shape  of  a  large  ie»«  1^ 


# 


010 


PBOOl 


or  AlCmO  DBOQVi 


berg,  had  deserted  the  proper  lead,  and  had  tteored 
far  out  of  the  tme  course. 

Dr.  Kane  at  onoe  ordered  a  halt,  and  ascending  an 
ice-berg  some  three  hnndved  feet  in  height,  he  Bar< 
veyed  the  prospect.  It  was  by  no  means  enooura- 
ffing.  They  had  advanced  into  the  recesses  of  the 
bay,  and  were  surrounded  on  all  sides  by  immense 
ioe-bergs  and  floating  ice.  Bo  dismal  appeared  their 
situation  that  one  of  the  sturdiest  members  of  the  ex- 
pedition,  who  accompanied  the  commander  in  his  sur- 
vey, burst  into  tears  at  the  sadness  of  their  situation. 

There  was  but  one  means  of  deliverance,  and  that 
it  behooved  them  to  adopt  instantly.  They  must  re- 
sume their  sledses  and  retrace  their  way  to  the  west- 
ward. One  sledge  had  already  been  cutAip  for  fire- 
wood. The  boat  JRed  Erie  now  shared  the  same  fate ; 
nnd  was  laid  upon  the  floor  of  the  other  boats.  Thr^e 
days  of  hard  dragging  over  the  ice  ensued ;  at  the 
end  of  which  time  they  regained  the  ice-berg  which 
had  misled  them  iu  Uie  tirst  instance,  and  had  induced 
them  to  take  a  course  which  had  nearly  ended  in  their 
ruin.  From  this  point  made  easier  by  experience, 
they  steered  in  the  right  direction  into  a  tree  lead, 
ana  were  wafted  onward  by  a  friendly  breeze  from 
the  north. 

Another  trouble  now  assailed  the  travelers,  not  less 
important  than  the  one  they  had  just  escaped.  Their 
provisions  had  fearfully  diminished,  and  yet  they  wore 
Qundreds  of  miles  distant  from  the  nearest  Danish 
settlement  of  Greenland.  Their  strength  diminislied 
in  proportion  with  their  food.  The  latter  had  become 
60  much  lessened,  that  five  ounces  of  bread-dust^  four 
ounces  of  tallow,  and  throe  of  bird's  meat,  were  all 
that  could  be  thenceforward  allowed  each  man  per 
day.  The  commander  now  determined  to  try  the 
more  open  sea,  as  their  progress  along  the  coast  had 
been  retarded  by  its  sinuosities.  During  two  days 
heavy  fogs  impeded  their  rapid  advance.  A  south' 
westerly  wind  brought  the  outside  pack  upon  them, 


DB.  KANK  8  icxri!j)rnoN. 


511 


nnd  cornpollod  thorn  to  haul  up  on  the  drifting  ice. 
By  this  moans  thoy  were  drifted  with  it  twenty  miles 
away  from  their  proper  coarse.  The  labors  and  toils 
of  the  party  were  extreme  and  exhausting ;  and  yet 
thev  manfully  kept  up  their  spirits. 

A  strange  phenomenon  now  showed  itself  among 
thorn;  and  one  too  of  ominous  import.  Though 
worked  excessively  they  yet  felt  no  iiunger.  They 
also  seemed  to  loso  their  physical  strength.  The 
I'  Faith  "  also  very  nearly  escaped  destruction,  by  be- 
ing left  behind  for  a  short  time.  The  outside  pressure 
had  broken  the  iloe  asunder,  and  tho  Faith  began  to 
ilout  away  from  them.  Hoi*  loss  would  have  entailed 
tliat  of  a  large  portion  of  the  scantv  provisions  which 
thev  still  possessed ;  and  would  have  inevitably 
sealed  their  ruin.  By  the  utmost  exertions  of  tho 
men,  some  of  whom  seemed  nearly  thrown  into  hys- 
terics by  her  threatened  loss,  she  was  again  secured. 

The  situation  of  tho  voyagers  continued  to  become 
more  critical.  They  experienced  a  difficulty  i  n  breath- 
iug,  and  an  inability  to  sleep.  Their  line  of  travel 
lay  through  the  open  bay,  in  the  midst  of  tho  great 
ice-drift  which  hurried  from  the  Arctic  climes  into 
the  Atlantic  ocean.  Their  boats  were  frail  and  shat- 
tered, and  constantly  made  enough  water  to  require 
their  utmost  exertions  in  bailing,  in  order  to  keep 
them  afloat.  Their  fresh  food  had  been  exhausted 
for  some  days ;  and  they  suffered  from  a  low  fever 
which  prostrated  them  to  the  utmost. 

At  this  point  of  their  progress  they  happily  killed 
a  seal  which  they  discovered  on  a  small  patch  of  ice. 
The  lirst  sight  of  it  created  the  utmost  entliusiasm 
among  the  men.  As  tlie  boats  silently  approached 
him  and  before  they  were  within  rifle  shot,  the  seal 
raised  his  head,  surveyed  the  strangers,  and  was  pre- 
paring to  dive  into  the  water.  .The  best  marksman 
of  the  company  with  their  best  rifle,  had  just  drawn, 
sight  upon  the  seal ;  and  the  lives  of  the  whole  p^artyj 
may  be  said  to  have  depended  on  the  Buccess  of  thja^ 


512 


PBOOBESS  OF  ABOnO  CIBCOTEBT. 


■% 


shot.  A  moment  of  breathless  anxiety  etisued ;  but 
the  skill  of  Petersen  prevailed.  At  the  instant  the 
crack  of  the  rifle  was  heard  the  seal  relaxed  his  long 
body,  and  his  head  fell  flat  on  the  ice  upon  its  utmost 
verge.  With  a  loud  yell  the  famished  men  ur^ed 
forward  the  boat  with  their  utmost  strength.  When 
they  reached  the  ice  thev  rushed  over  it,  laughing, 
crying,  and  brandishing  their  knives.  The  unhappy 
seal  was  cut  into  strips  before  he  had  fairly  time  to 
expire ;  and  was  gorging  the  men  with  his  raw  re- 
mains. Kot  a  single  ounce  was  lost ;  the  intestines 
even,  were  boiled  in  the  soup-kettle ;  and  the  carti- 
laginous flippers  were  distributed  and  chewed  to 
pieces  with  the  utmost  relish. 

This  opportune  supply  of  fresh  food  saved  the  lives 
of  the  party.  Their  mental  and  physical  health  was 
restored.  Several  days  afterward  they  killed  another 
eealy  and  thus  each  one  retained  a  mens  eana  in  sano 
corpore.  On  the  1st  of  August  they  came  within  sight 
of  the  Devil's  Thumb,  and  were  no  longer  wanderers 
in  unknown  regions ;  but  were  within  the  limits  of 
the  district  frequented  by  the  whalers.  Soon  they 
reached  the  Duck  Islands.  At  length  they  passed 
Cape  Shackleton,  and  then  steered  for  the  shore  of 
Greenland. 

Their  long  voyage  with  its  infinite  anxieties  and 
toils — their  perilous  adventures  amid  cheerless  conti- 
nents of  ice — their  narrow  escapes  from  the  moun- 
tainous ice-bergs — ^their  sufferings  from  cold,  hunger, 
and  disease — their  apprehensions  of  an  unknown 
grave  in  the  solitudes  of  the  Arctic  realms— their 
doubts  of  a  final  happy  escape  from  the  innumerable 
perils,  and  of  their  welcome  vision  of  their  natiye  land 
and  the  firesides  of  their  former  years — all  these  now 
terminated  in  eventual  triumph  and  escape.  They 
now  shaped  the  course  directly  toward  the  shores  of 
Greenland,  which  clearly  loomed  up  in  their  distant 
horizon.  Kext  day  they  met  the  nrst  inhabitant  of 
thikt  world  from  which  they  had  been  so  long  shut 


ij 


•  *i 


4      DB.  KANE'S  EXPEDITION. 


513 


out.  It  was  a  Greenlander  who,  in  his  small  canoe 
or  kayak,  was  seeking  eider  down  among  the  islands 
which  stud  the  coast.  They  hailed  him.  One  of  the 
men,  Petersen,  knew  him.  It  was  Paul  Trocharias. 
"  Don't  you  know  me  ? "  enquired  Petersen,  as  the 
boats  approached.  "I'm  Carl  Petersen."  "No," 
answered  the  Greenlander,  "his  wife  says  he  is 
dead  ; "  and  with  this  response  he  rowed  away  from 
them. 

During  two  days  longer  they  continued  to  follow 
the  coast,  sailing  southward.  At  the  end  of  this  time 
they  discerned  the  single  mast  of  a  small  shallop,  and 
heard  words  of  mingled  English  and  Danish  from  the 
sailors  on  board  of  her.  Thej  soon  discerned  that 
it  was  the  TJpemavick  oil-boat  on  its  way  toKingatok 
to  obtain  bluober.  The  annual  ship  had  arrived  from 
Copenhagen  at  Proven ;  and  this  was  one  of  the  boats 
which  supplied  Iier  with  a  cargo  of  oil.  From  the 
sailors  on  board  the  shallop.  Dr.  Kane  first  received 
information  of  the  great  events  which,  during  his  ab- 
Bcence  had  agitated  the  world  to  which  he  had  been 
80  long  a  stranger ;  how  England  and  France  had  com- 
bined with  the  Turk  to  humble  the  haughty  pride  of 
the  imperial  Romanoff;  and  how  vast  armies  were 
then  engaged  in  mortal  strife  on  the  once  quiet  and 
fertile  plams  of  the  Crimea.  For  the  first  time  he 
learned  the  importance  which  Sebastopol  had  ac- 
quired in  the  history  and  fate  of  the  world,  sur- 
rounded as  it  then  was  with  a  battling  host  of  a  hun- 
dred thousand  men. 

The^  rowed  on.  Soon  Kasarsoak,  the  snow-capped 
Summit  of  Sanderson's  Hope  appeard  to  them,  tower- 
ing above  the  mists ;  and  as  they  approached  the 
welome  harbor  of  TJpemavick,  from  which  they  had 
issued  several  years  before  in  the  gallant  vessel  they 
had  now  left  behind  them,  they  felt  as  only  such  men 
under  such  circumstances  could  feel.  During  eighth- 
four  days  they  had  lived  in  the  open  air^  tossing  in 
trail  boats  on  the  bosom  of  the  angry,  half-frozep 
V 


IMll 


^M 


514 


PROGRESS  OF  ARCTIO   DISCOVERY. 


deep.  'Hioy  were  delivered  from  a  thousand  deaths, 
and  arrived  at  last  safely  at  Upernaviek,  where  they 
were  received  with  hospitality  by  the  charitable 
Danes,  who  inhabit  that  lonely  and  cheerless  outport 
of  the  civilized  world. 

Dr.  Kane  resolved  to  embark  his  party  in  the  Dan- 
ish vessel  the  Mariane,  which  sailed  on  the  6th  of 
September  for  the  Shetland  Islands.  They  took  with 
them  their  little  boat  the  Faith,  which  had  accom- 
panied them  throngh  eo  many  adventures.  They  only 
retained  their  clothes  and  documents,  of  all  they  had 
once  possessed  on  board  the  Advance.  On  the  11th 
they  arrived  at  Godhaven,  where  they  found  their  for- 
imer  friend  Mr.  Olrik,  the  Danish  Inspector  of  North 
Greenland.  Here  Dr.  Kane  first  heard  of  the  squad- 
ron under  Captain  Hartstene*  which  had  been  sent 
out  from  the  United  States  in  pursuit  of  him,  &pd 
tlearned  that  it  had  touched  at  that  spot. 

This  squadron  consisted  of  two  Vessels,  the  United 
States  barque  "Release,"  and  the  United  States  steam- 
brig  "  Arctic."  They  had  sailed  from  New  York  in 
June  1855,  and  on  the  9th  of  July  they  were  at 
Lievely  on  the  coast  of  Greenland.    On  that  day  they 

^  ^resumed  their  search  after  the  party  of  Dr.  Kane,  and 
sailed  for  "Waigat  Strait,  intending  to  touch  at  Uper- 
naviek for  information.  From  Upernaviek  both  vessels 
stood  northward.    They  soon  met  the  floating  ice 
.drifting  down;  but  they  persisted  in  advancing,  and 

'thus  worked  along  for  forty  miles  to  Wedge  Sand. 
Here  they  were  compelled  to  moor  themselves  to  the 
bergs,  and  await  the  opening  of  the  ice,  which  had  be- 
come so  compact  as  to  render  their  immediate  ad- 
vance impossible.  After  several  days  the  ice  opened, 
and  enabled  them  to  proceed.    They  then  steamed  to 

,  Sugar  Loaf  Island,  and  entered  the  closely  packed 

I  flpe  of  Melville  Bay.  By  the  13th  of  August  they 
had  forced  a  passage  into  the  North  "Water,  after 
twenty-eight  days  or  laborious  sailing.  They  then 
passed  Cape  York  and  Wolstenholme  Island.     Here 


DK.  KANl^  EXPEDITION. 


615 


hastening  on  in  the  steamer,  Oaptain  Hartstene  visited 
Cape  Alexander  and  Southerland  Island.  These 
points  were  beyond  the  reach  of  the'Esquimaux,  and 
might  probably  contain  traces  of  Dr.  Kane's  party. 
They  were  thoroughly  searched;  but  no  evidence  ap- 
peared that  any  human  foot  had  ever  invaded  those 
frozen  solitudes.  Thence  they  advanced  to  Pelham 
Point,  where  they  observed  a  few  stones  piled  together. 
A  part^  landed  here,  and  beneath  this  rude  m^ument 
they  discovered  a  small  vial  with  the  letter  K.  cut  in 
the  cork.  The  vial  contained  a  large  musquito,  and 
a  smallpiece  of  cartridge  paper,  on  which  was  written 
"i?r.  Jfon^,  1863." 

This  discovery  induced  Captain  Hartstene  to  pltth 
further  north.  The  ice  however  soon  stoppea'liis 
progress ;  and  drifting  southward  with  the  current, 
he  examined  Cape  HottDrton  and  Littleton  Island. 
But  no  trace  of  Dr.  Kane  was  found,  though  in  a  for* 
mer  letter  to  hi#%rother,  he  had  expressed  his  int^- 
tion  to  erect  a  cairn  on  one  of  these  localities.^  Fif- 
teen miles  north-west  of  Cape  Alexander  they  discov- 
ered a  party  of  Esquimaux,  who,  three  miles  distant 
on  the  Qreenlaud  shore,  had  a  temporary  settlement 
of  seven  tents,  inhabited  by  thirty  persons.  Here 
Captain  Hartstene  found  many  articles  which  had  be- 
longed to  Dr.  Kane's  party,  and  which  had  been  left 
behind ;  such  as  tin  pans  and  pots,  canvas  and  iren 
spikes,  as  well  as  the  tube  of  a  telescope  which  was 
recognized  as  having  belonged  to  Dr.  Kane. 

Captain  Hartstene  closely  interrogated  the  Esqiii- 
maux  as  to  their  knowledge  of  the  missing  company. 
From  them  he  learned  that  Dr.  Kane,  havmg  lost  2ub 
vessel  somewhere  in  the  ice  to  the  northward,  had 
been  at;ihat  point  with  two  boats  and  a  sled,  and  af- 
ter remaining  there  ten  days  had  proceeded  soa^- 
ward  toward  U  pernavick.  With  such  conclusive  evi- 
dence before  him  Captain  Hartstene  also  determined 
to  return  southward.  He  touched  at  Cape  Alexander, 
Sutherland  Islands,  and  Hakluyt  Island.    Thenoe  he 


p>B>— — — fthi 


516 


PBOOBESS  OF  ABOTIO  DISCOYEBY. 


fiteered  for  the  entrance  of  •Lancaster  Sound,  and  ex- 
amined the  coast  between  Cape  Horsburg  and  Cape 
Warrander.    Alter  passing  Cape  BuUin  he  found  the 
ice  firmly  packed,  and  the  vessels  seemed  frozen  into 
their  winter  quarters.    But  after  twenty-four  hours 
spent  in  a  laborious  attempt  to  batter  their  way 
through  the  ice  they  succeeded ;  and  after  thus  ma- 
kinff  the  circuit  of  nearly  the  whole  northern  part  of 
Bamn's  Bay,  they  returned  toward  Possession  and 
Pound's  Bay.    Along  this  whole  voyage  they  con- 
stantly fired  guns,  burned  blue-lights  and  threw  up 
rockets,  w^^h  the  hope  of  attracting  the  attention  of 
the  wanderers.    They  were  disappointed  however, 
ain^  seeing  no  traces  of  Dr.  Kane  s  party  whatever, 
Ol^ttain  Hartstene  concluded  that  they  had  passed 
through  Melville  Bay  to  Upemavick ;  and  he  resolved 
at  once  to  follow  them  thither.  \ 

His  conjecture  was  right.  On  the  11th  of  Septem- 
ber, as  the  Greenland  vessel  Mariibe  was  about  set- 
ting out  from  the  port  of  Godhaven,  having  Dr. 
!Kan^s  party  on  board,  the  look-out  man  at  the  hill- 
top announced  the  approach  of  a  distant  steamer, 
^oon-  she  came  nearer,  having  a  barque  in  tow ;  and 
the  immortal  stars  and  stripes  floating  majestically 
^t  lier  mast-head.  Instantly  the  Faith  was  lowered 
fi^m  the  side  of  the  Mariane,  and  the  party  in  her 
puUed  lustily  for  the  approaching  vessel.  All  the 
.boats  of  the  settlement  hurried  after  her  wake.  Pre- 
sently the  Faith  was  alongside  the  Arctic ;  and  Cap- 
tain Sartstene  eagerly  hailed  a  little  man  in  a  ragged 
fiannel  shirt;  "/«  that  Dr.  KaneV^  An  affirmative 
answer  was  instantly  returned  by  the  Doctor  him- 
self: and  in  a  few  moments  the  distinguished  naviga- 
tor pounded  on  the  deck  of  his  country's  ship;  was 
received  with  loud  plaudits  of  welcome  by  her  com- 
v^der  and  crew ;  and%us  Jio  and  his  party  returned 
lOgain,  as  those  alive  from  the  dead,  to  an  unfrozen 
warld  of  civilization,  comfort,  and  security.  Dr. 
^a^pi^-B  labors  had  not  resulted  in  the  discovery  of 


'«L 


DR.  KAMl^EXrKDlTION. 


517 


any  traces  or  temains  of  Bfer  Jphn  Franklin's  party ; 
but  it  was  tho  means  of  s^ec&nnj^  important  additions 
to  geographical  knowledge,  and  valuable  acquisitions 
in  botany,  meteorology,  geology,  and  other  depart- 
n-ents  of  science.  His  researches  have  left  but  little 
to  be  obtained  by  any  successor  in  Arctic  explora- 
tions; however  resolute,  vigorous,  and  accomplished 
he  may  be.  Dr.  Kane  and  his  associates  returned 
to  New  York  in  the  squadron  of  Captain  Hartstene, 
on  the  11th  of  October,  1855. . 


: 


» 


i  ' 


^ 


y 


-m 


t-    5 


FEONTIER  LIFE; 


,   SCENES  AND  ADVENTDEfeS  IN  THE  SOUTH-WEST. 

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■Hi  iiiilii.iiiijBalitWIlMigg 


FROST'S  I»ICTORIA.L 


HISTORY  OF  CALIFORNIA, 

raOM  THB  PKBIOD  OF  THB 

CONQUEST  BT  SFAIN  TO  THB  FOBMATZOZT  OF  A  STATE  ; 

OONTAININO  AN  ACCOUNT  OF  THX 

GOLD  inNES  BESOUBCEB,  ADTENTUBBS  AMONG  THE  KtSEBB,  ABYICE  TO 

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»»« 

FROM  THE  PREFACE. 

Hie  prinoipal  reason  which  induced  the  pnblHation  of  this  work,  wu 
•  deiire  to  connect  with  entertainment  the  promotion  of  &  snore  ezten* 
■ire  knowledge  of  those  interesting  portions  of  the  world  where  it  haa 
bMB  the  privilege  of  the  author  to  travel  and  make  his  observations. 

While  the  world  is  literally  teeming  with  fiotitions  pablicationi, 
here  is  presented  a  volume  of  facts ;  and  in  the  absence  of.  the  tinsel 
adornment  of  a  glowing  and  high-sounding  style,  the  tmthftilness  of 
what  is  narrated  is  the  principal  merit  to  which  the  work  is  entitled. 

The  part  relating  to  the  history  of  the  Oregon  Mission  it  i«  believed 
will  supply  the  public  with  needed  information  respecting  the  trna 
eharaioter  of  that  important  Mission,  .«nd  of  the  conrageons  and  self-de* 
Dying  men  who  were_  the  first  to  carry  the  gospel  across  the  Reeky 
Mountains,  and  to  proclaim  it  along  the  shores  of  the  Pacific. 

T1i6  last  few  chapters  of  the  bbok  are  devoted  exclusively  to  the  ge> 
egmjAy  and  history  of  the  Oregon  Territory.  From  a  residenee  of 
several  years  in  Oregon,  connected  with  the  fact  that  he  made  it  «lea<U 
ing  object  to  become  informed  firom  personal  observation,  noto^ly  with 
the  geography  of  the  eountry,  its  productions,  the  soil,  climate^  seasone 
mountains,  valleys,  prairies,  forests,  rivers,  Ao.,  but  also  with  every 
circumstance  of  importance  which  has  ever  transpired  in  connection 
witH  either  the  civil,  political,  or  religious  interests  of  the  country,  the 
author  believes  himself  qualified  to  present  the  inquiring  publie  with 
more  correct  information  regarding  that  portion  of  the  world,  than  haa 
hitherto  been  furnished  from  any  aoarce. 

Sold  by  tU  Booksellers.    Mailed,  pott-paid,  to  any  a'ldress,  upon  receipt  if  price. 

C.  M.  SAXTON,  MIIiLBR  &  Co.,  Publishers. 

95  Park  Row,  Xev  T«rh. 


1' 


1 


INDIAN  WARS  OF  ThI^J.  "s. 


EMDRAOINQ   THB 

€arl]i  Inbtnn  Mars  af  \\t  €alamt}i 

AND 

THE    AMERICAN  tflEVOLUTION, 

KINO  PHILIP'S  WAR,   THE    PBBNCH  AND    INDIAN  WABS,  THB 

NOBTH-WESTBBN  WAR,  BLACK   HAWK  WAR, 

8EMIN0LB  WAR,  AC.  AC. 

BY  JOHN   FROST,  LL.  D. 

146  Engravings  from  Original  Designs  by  Croome  and  other  Artists. 

One  Yolame,  300  Pages».12mo.    Price  75  cts. 


Our  relations  with  the  aboriginal  irhabitants  of  this  continent,  f«ffin 
a  distinct  ond  very  important  and  interesting  portion  of  the  history  of 
this  Republic.  It  is  unfortunately,  for  the  most  part,  a  history  of 
bloody  wars,  in  which  the  border  settlers  have  suffered  all  the  hon'ors 
of  savage  aggression,  and  in  which  portions  of  our  colonial  settlemeuta 
have  sometimes  been  cut  o£f  and  destroyed. 

Sold  by  all  Booksellers.    Mailed,  post-paid,  to  i»,ny  address,  n\Km  receipt  of  price. 

C.  M.  BAXTON,  MILLER  &  Co.,  Publiahers, 

'*  25  Park  Roic,  yew  Tot?:. 


s 


s. 


